Karl Mayer recently unveiled its new digital brand at ITMA ASIA + CITME 2018 in Shanghai. KM.ON stands for “digital driven innovation.” This brand brings together the digital solutions portfolio of the Karl Mayer Digital Factory, a new software start-up, and the entire Karl Mayer Group.
Karl Mayeris systematically driving the topic of digitisation forward in order to seize the opportunities offered by the upheavals of our time. “Digitisation is a basic component of our company strategy. With our corporate start-up, the Karl Mayer Digital Factory, we have a software company at our disposal that can act quickly and customer-oriented on the market. Another integral part of Karl Mayer’s digitisation strategy is its participation in ADAMOS, a strategic alliance of German global market leaders in machine construction and the Software AG. On the basis of the ADAMOS technology, and as part of this network for developments, Karl Mayeris living up with the product portfolio of the new KM.ON brand to its claim of being a global market leader also in terms of digital Solutions,” says Karl Mayer’s Managing Director, Arno Gärtner.
The Karl Mayer Digital Factory is a pioneering company operating alongside this innovative market leader. It employs a team of software specialists and technology experts in a new, creative environment away from the main company headquarters. “With the much-viewed brand launch and our first digital solutions, we were clearly showing that we are an expert partner for the digitalisation. Both our customers, as well as other textile machinery manufacturers, welcomed this initiative, which successfully positioned us as a real innovator,” says Arno Gärtner. Antonia Gottschalk and Maximilian Kürig, the Managing Directors of the Karl Mayer Digital Factory, were able to have many in-depth conversations. “The first well-known customers are extremely interested in our digital solutions and want to test them out,” says Maximilian Kürig.
KM.ON’s digital portfolio of services will support customers in selected areas and is made up of eight solution categories. k.ey – a conventional industry PC together with appropriate software – provides access to the solutions. The platform of hardware and software can be installed easily and links the machines securely to the protected cloud. This is based on the expertise gained by participating in ADAMOS with regard to the use of an open IIoT environment which is specifically focused on the needs of machinery and plant construction. This enables the benefits of KM.ON to be exploited easily and securely.
At ITMA ASIA + CITME 2018, the system, which is made up of eight KM.ON solution categories, together with the first apps and solutions covered three areas of Management, Maintenance and Service was presented.
k.management enables the customer to look at the current production process, regardless of location and in real time. The production data are displayed clearly on a dashboard. This simple way of delivering information improves process transparency and acts as a valid database for decision making and planning. These advantages are based on Karl Mayer’s own system of machine networking.
The solutions in the k.maintenance category are designed to support customers in their own maintenance operations. As the first solution, Karl Mayer showcased the Check Parts app for testing the authenticity of the spare parts, with expanded functions. Above all, the scan-to-order feature is new and makes it even easier to order spare parts online. Automatic data transfer improves the customers’ day-to-day operations when ordering on site, as well as for warehousing.
k.service’s product world will, in the long term, include all the functions that manage the communication between the customer and Karl Mayer, should the client require assistance. The ability to make contact quickly, together with efficient communication procedures, guarantees a high level of machine availability. In Shanghai, Karl Mayer showcased the latest developments in this system, which is based on the tried-and-tested CONNECT app.
Steps will be taken in the near future to expand the offers of KM.ON. Other solutions and the expansion phases for existing products are already being planned, e.g. in the areas of data analysis, condition monitoring and the digital machine logbook.
