By now, most people should be able to list the theoretical benefits of Industry 4.0 in their sleep - but many of these advantages have not been put into practice yet, despite all the exciting potential. For instance, many users of pneumatic systems would love to be able to access real-time information on the state of wear and energy efficiency at a glance, in order to act on potential leaks or machine downtimes as quickly as possible. At last, someone is now responding to these wishes. On show at HANNOVER MESSE 2018, the Smart Pneumatics Monitor (SPM) from Aventics monitors operating conditions, analyzes data, and provides this processed information to users to support status-oriented maintenance.

"As actuators of many other components, pneumatic valves have a great influence on system availability, machine safety, energy efficiency, and even raw material consumption," explains Dieter Michalkowski, responsible for the Smart Pneumatics Monitor at Aventics. "There are excellent economic reasons to ensure that these valves are operating optimally and that users are taking full advantage of their wide range of functions." This is why Aventics uses "smart" valves that alert users in good time when individual components reach critical limits and action needs to be taken. By enabling predictive maintenance, the Aventics SPM thus helps to make a reality of the many theoretical Industry 4.0 advantages.