Although Industry 4.0 and the surging advance of digitalization are ultimately enabling companies to hold their own on the global market, this doesn't lessen the competitive pressure they face. Ever more demanding customers require constant scrutiny of strategies and existing business practices. Product development that is geared to market expectations is often the key to continuous innovation and boosting efficiency. The highest possible levels of agility are vital for operation and responding to changing market requirements. In the end, it comes down to optimizing the use of the existing infrastructure while also establishing new tools and technologies. Visitors to the Autodesk partner stand at HANNOVER MESSE 2017 can find out how the entire process chain can be prepared - from design and construction to production - to meet the challenges of the future with the help of N+P Informationssysteme GmbH, based in Germany’s Saxony region, and state-of-the-art manufacturing technologies. One of the stand's key themes is the use of augmented reality (AR) in the digital factory.

A fundamental requirement for transparent production is rapid availability and instant analysis of production statistics. Visitors to the N+P stand have the opportunity to use Microsoft HoloLens glasses to take a look at augmented reality (AR), enhanced by additional digital components. Users see a 2D factory layout encompassing the 3D CAD model of a processing machine. Further information such as the serial number, last maintenance date, and year of manufacture of the machine can also be accessed. Repair instructions or similar items could also be displayed via a direct link to a document management system. What's more, the AR glasses can also be used to show machine design data, process assembly and maintenance checklists, evaluate KPIs and resolve error messages.