Atotech Expands Product Offering with Digital Factory Suite

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As a leading specialty-chemicals technology company, and market leader in advanced electroplating solutions, Atotech announced today that it has expanded its product offering with the Digital Factory Suite. This platform combines a new set of data-driven applications, systems integration capabilities, and remote services. The supervising and traceability applications enable Atotech’s customers to take the first steps in the transition to smart, data-driven manufacturing operations.

Harald Ahnert, President of Electronics at Atotech, said: “We are delighted that we can now offer our customers a solution which paves the way for them to transition from equipment automation and the Industrial Internet of Things to true smart-factory operations. We believe that with our Digital Factory Suite, our customers can generate unprecedented value. Even more so as it easily integrates with their existing production management system and allows for effective remote support.”

Atotech’s Digital Factory Suite platform connects to the on-site production equipment and continuously collects process and equipment data during manufacturing. Using advanced analytics, and platform applications such as supervising, and traceability, the collected data generates high-value insights into equipment and process conditions. This enables factory engineers to perform supervision, maintenance, quality inspections, or general traceability activities directly from their workplace. In addition, real-time condition monitoring and mobile alerts prevent defects and alarms from being overlooked, thus reducing the risk of unplanned downtime. All these functionalities significantly enhance the speed of customer support, especially when combined with remote services from Atotech. To assist customers quickly and sustainably, Atotech also offers remote services via augmented-reality technology, which is supported by a remote-access platform for fast and secure customer service and support.

As a leading specialty chemicals technology company, Atotech has a long history of providing best-in-class chemistry, equipment, and services to diverse end markets.  Now, software solutions and digital services have been added to its product portfolio. For nearly two decades, Atotech had collaborated with an external partner and only recently decided to incorporate industrial digital solutions into its own product offering. The goal: to facilitate and drive superior solutions for the future production needs of their customers.

Stefan Stefanescu, Head of Business Development Industrial Digital Solutions at Atotech, explained: “Our digital suite of solutions in the field of software and service combines industrial software such as SCADA with the latest digital technology, such as IIoT, augmented reality, and digital twins. All features work together in optimizing operations, enabling faster support, and increasing production equipment performance in our customer’s factories. In doing so, we help our customers operate more efficiently, predict and schedule maintenance, eliminate unscheduled downtime, increase yield, and monitor and automate production to the highest possible degree.” 

The Digital Factory Suite is an add-on product of Atotech’s state-of-the-art equipment-control software, known as the Visualization and Control System (“VCS”).  The VCS, combined with the new Digital Factory Suite, will come together to help Atotech’s customers unlock the benefits of IIoT and data-driven applications in factory operations.