The Ramifications of “Big Data”
We seem to be inundated with the term “Big Data.” What is Big Data and what does it have to do with manufacturing and distribution?
Big Data is a term for data sets that are so large or complex that traditional data processing applications are inadequate to deal with them. Challenges include analysis, capture, data curation, search, sharing, storage, transfer, visualization, querying, updating and information privacy. The term “big data” often refers to the use of predictive analytics, user behavior analytics or certain other advanced data analytics methods that extract value from data.Accuracy in Big Data may lead to more confident decision-making and better decisions can result in greater operational efficiency, cost reduction and reduced risk.
Manufacturers are investing in Big Data. According to the Tech Target 2015 IT Priorities Survey, 31 percent said their organizations plan deployments of BI, analytics or data warehousing tools in 2015. A quarter of respondents expect to invest in Big Data analytics and 21 percent expect to invest in Big Data processing and management.
Big Data is quickly becoming an important element of ERP. In “5 Big Data Technology Predictions for 2015,” Thor Olavsrud, senior technology writer for CIO magazine wrote, “In just a few short years, Big Data technologies have gone from the realm of hype to one of the core disruptors of the new digital age. 2014 saw Big Data initiatives inside the enterprise increasingly move from test to production. In 2015, Big Data will push further into the enterprise with even more use cases—specifically real-time use cases.”
The opportunities to access to Big Data are mind-boggling…the standard customer questionnaire…who clicks what on the website. Compared to Big Data, these are small examples. It’s on the factory floor itself where the biggest purveyor of data is now becoming available and growing. The connected factory, with its Internet of Things (IoT) and smart sensors, smart tools, smart diagnostics and smart machines – all running together on the Internal Internet or Industrial Control System – provide more data that the most enthusiastic statistician could ever hope for. Using this data, manufacturers can access real-time data to analyze just about anything they might want from warranty claims to preventative maintenance to manufacturing inventory control to scheduling and capacity planning. The problem is that the amount of data can be overwhelming.
