Reducing unplanned downtime, preventing equipment failure, and extending its life – all while increasing efficiencies – are key goals of maintenance strategy development. Allister Steel argues that achieving the most appropriate balance of cost, risk and performance with the minimum life cycle costs is key to achieving these goals.

The use of specialised mobile devices in hazardous areas has become a cornerstone for safety, efficiency, and innovation across the industrial sector. Mobile equipment such as intrinsically safe phones, radios, smartphones, and tablets designed for these environments are not just tools – they are lifelines, according to Jan Rieks Zonderman.

Many engineers still rely on manual calibration methods to ensure their measurement tools are accurate. However, today’s digital calibration tools can offer a faster, more accurate, according to Mantracourt.

Steve Sands explores the role of AI in enabling predictive maintenance within smart factories, covering the environmental and economic benefits – from reduced energy consumption and lower carbon footprints to extended equipment life. He also considers the future potential of AI in creating more resilient, sustainable manufacturing operations.

Do you feel like you are maintaining assets for maintenance’s sake, with little ability to optimise spend or understand failure risk? If so, you may have fallen victim to the maintenance efficiency trap. Approaches like Asset Performance Management (APM) can help, says Jochen Reiß.

ABB has been selected by GreenIron, a Swedish company supplying materials reductions technology in the mining and metals industries, to provide automation and control system solutions for a new commercial facility.

Chris James highlights the technologies that he believes hold the most promise for engineers looking to streamline and improve maintenance tasks to reduce unexpected downtimes.

Dr Andrii Melashchenko discusses the challenges and opportunities that AI has to offer in the OT environment.

Ali Khalil offers insights to help inform the decision about when to use a soft starter instead of a variable frequency drive.

A cobot solution is alleviating health and safety issues at a German pharmaceutical manufacturing facility by working collaboratively with human employees to pack and stack packets of tablets onto pallets.

Rob McGreevy argues that the next wave of industrial transformation depends on a handful of technologies.

Wireless data communications systems firm, Scan RF was tasked with implementing a site-wide monitoring system at the 17,000 hectare Kolomela iron-ore mine in South Africa.

IMI is set to supply a package of transfer line and decoke valves for the world’s first net-zero carbon emissions ethylene cracker, located in Canada.

U.S. Vanadium, a supplier of vanadium compounds, relies on sliding gate valves to stabilise the process temperature during the production process.

Michael DeMaria, Director of Product Management for Azima DLI, a Fluke Reliability company, answers questions about the role that artificial intelligence (AI) has to play in overcoming maintenance challenges.

A wireless condition monitoring solution is helping prevent unplanned downtime of crane gearboxes and motors at Contargo’s trimodal (ship, truck and rail) port terminals in Mannheim and Ludwigshafen, Germany.

For the software developers at Festo, ensuring seamless and consistent data usage is crucial. While many automation software solutions exist, achieving full data integration from mechanics to the cloud over a machine's entire life cycle is still a challenge. Festo AX plays a pivotal role in providing a comprehensive customer experience, aligning with Festo's vision to be open, intuitive, and technology-neutral.

Suzanne Gill reports on the barriers and benefits of adopting Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solutions in the operational technology environment.

Sébastien Ferré discusses the benefits that pigging systems have to play in ensuring more efficient and sustainable food processing and easier cleaning between batches.