Innovation, Profitability, and Sustainability: Key Aspects for Making an Industry More Competitive
Technological advances such as 5G, IoT, artificial intelligence, and robotics, along with implementation of innovative and sustainable solutions, were all given a starring role recently at the Smart Energy Congress organized by enerTIC. The attendees who gave presentations put an emphasis on these as the primary tools that will allow for a successful energy transition and digital transformation for cities and industries.
In this context, Almudena Nieto de Castro, Head of Business Development for GMV’s Energy and Utilities sector, gave a talk in the Strategy Auditorium, where she put the focus on innovation, profitability, and sustainability as key aspects for making an industry more competitive. During her presentation, she used some of the projects we are working on at GMV as examples, which have taken those aspects into consideration. She discussed the collaborative robot being used for laboratory sample disposal, which improves efficiency and enhances worker safety; the use of mobile apps and the cloud to digitalize the fueling system for aircraft, which optimizes the process while reducing the administrative burden and waste generated; and digital transformation of the value chain in Spain’s food and agriculture industry, where artificial intelligence is being used to incorporate higher levels of technology, innovation, and sustainability, while also maintaining a commitment to energy efficiency.
Ángel C. Lázaro, Head of Robotics and Automation for GMV’s Industry sector, also made a presentation, which gave him an opportunity to explain how everything will change in the new era of artificial intelligence and 5G. He told those in attendance that as we enter into this new digital era, advanced connectivity has become an essential driver for the revolutionary capabilities brought about by digital transformations. It allows for increased efficiency through automation, and many new technologies such as cloud computing and IoT depend upon high-quality connectivity. In addition, it is making consumer experiences better, thanks to significantly improved service quality, and it is expanding opportunities for remote work, access to services that require very high bandwidth, and transmission of higher-quality content.
As an example, Ángel played a video showing a cloud robotics system that gives companies the ability to move robots around in outdoor settings. The aim of this system is to allow the company’s customers to automatically execute specific tasks that provide value for their business. This solution developed by GMV, known as uPathWay, is software that presents all of the development steps as packets, so that, to use an example taken from the food and agriculture industry, a rancher can focus on ways to use an automated robot to perform inspection work for water or food quality. To create these possibilities, we have relied upon application of artificial intelligence as a technology that can be used to control the system, and 5G as a way to transmit large quantities of data and control commands.