• Why should one bet on AI today
• How can employees start using AI in their daily tasks?
• What are the pitfalls?

Triggered back in 2013 at Manufacturing day Genk, the 7 FOF (Factory Of The Future) transformations inspired Altachem NV to pave it’s own continuous improvement way and embrace the lean and industry4.0 culture. As an SME and being left with a Calimero feeling , we have searched for and finally created a Manufacturing Eco System to support our path and growth towards Operational Excellence. Dempsey Desmet - active as Supply Chain Specialist - will bring this inspirational case and highlight a few challenges and achievements in the field of digital & smart manufacturing, continuous improvement & networked factory.

Barry Callebaut is the heart & engine of the chocolate & cocoa industry. Their roots date all the way back to 1854 and have been providing the world with sweet & delicate chocolate ever since. Barry Callebaut started its journey of digital transformation in manufacturing in autumn 2015 with Wonderware MES. The implementation was not without its challenges. This presentation will cover how Barry Callebaut navigated the ‘hype cycle’ from ‘inflated expectations’ through ‘disillusionment’ up to ‘enlightenment’ and finally reaching the ‘plateau of productivity’. They will share key learnings from their ‘smart factory’ initiative which has become one of the organization’s key strategic initiatives and the single largest contributor to productivity growth. You will hear the challenges they faced and how they overcame them, backed by use cases that made the business case and achieved tangible results.

VCST , part of the BMT Group, is a global player in the production of gears and brake system components for the automotive industry. To arm itself in a rapidly changing, highly competitive world, VCST has drawn up a digital transformation roadmap. Connecting systems, machines and people allows us to optimally operate our various processes: planning, real-time monitoring and reporting. We give an overview of the steps VCST has taken in recent years to build an organisation ready for the future.

While many companies struggle to implement "Maintenance 4.0", AGC has found an efficient way to narrow down into the right investments that hold value to the organization. In this presentation, Gauthier Lecroart, Manufacturing strategy, maintenance & engineering manager at AGC Automotive Europe, will explain the methodology followed by the organization to implement this program across different plants in Europe.The methodology ranges from a maturity assessment, CMMS data mining, Dynamic Criticality analysis to Value driven Project identification.

The NIS2 directive is nearing its implementation date, and targets the manufacturing industry with its focus and oversight on cyber security. Peter and Jens often receive the questions "but what does that mean for us?", "how do we get started on this?" and "what do we need to put in place?". During this talk, Peter and Jens will dive into these questions to demystify NIS2 and give you practical insights to take security in your organisation to the next stage.

More and more companies are offering smart features by connecting their products and/or machines to the Internet. This offers the possibility of applying Artificial Intelligence to the data generated by these machines and/or products to track predictive maintenance or component wear, for instance. In this way, the customer and/or user can use the product longer and more optimally or the company can optimise its manufacturing process in terms of e.g. energy consumption. Sirris, as a non-profit knowledge and research centre that helps Belgian industry become more competitive, is working together with several companies to apply AI to their data to find out which functions companies can offer to their customers or integrate into their own production process. This presentation will cover various examples of how AI has been applied in Belgian industry to make companies more competitive for the future.

Production employees are facing quite some challenges due to the increased complexity and work load in flexible manufacturing environments. Flanders Make is exploring how AI can be leveraged to address these challenges and provide better operator guidance in the future. Therefore we have built an artificial colleague encompassing different AI modules that can support the production employee on request. In this presentation, we will focus on the intelligence of the artificial colleague and the different ways of interaction with humans.

This presentation gives an overview of digital twin approaches and best practices for flexible manufacturing environments based on available commercial tools for simulation and emulation of full scale production and logistics environments. Research results are presented that lower the digital twin configuration effort and facilitate model (re)use towards value creation. A number of application examples are given to illustrate the virtual factory benefits and challenges to validate for example factory layout designs, novel automation concepts, virtual commissioning of industrial software, production schedules and human-centered manufacturing workplaces. The main concepts will be demonstrated on a research infrastructure for Flexible Assembly Systems available at Flanders Make (InfraFlex).

Dive into innovation with Levi Slap, Data & AI Lecturer at the Karel de Grote-Hogeschool. Discover the transformative power of AI in factories, unveil cutting-edge use cases, and learn insights on boosting efficiency, reducing costs, and reimagining the manufacturing landscape. Delve into a compelling use case as our esteemed co-speakers Steven Smedts from Lanxess and Jan De Lombaert from Tessenderlo Group showcases real-world applications of AI in their facilities. Additionally, our co-speaker dr. Jeroen Geuens from the research centre Sustainable Industries at the Karel de Grote-Hogeschool will delve deeper into how AI can help you replace costly or toxic chemicals. Ignite your imagination and join us for an electrifying experience that will inspire you to harness the full potential of AI in your industrial endeavours!

In 2020, Picanol fell victim to a ransomware attack. What happened exactly, and what are the lessons learned from this. How does Picanol see the evolution of the cybercrime landscape today and how does it protect itself against it?

Barry Callebaut is the heart and engine of the chocolate and cocoa industry, manufacturing delicious products in 65 factories worldwide. In this session, Barry Callebaut will take you through its OT cyber security journey. What started off as a sidetrack embedded in automation projects has evolved into a dedicated organization, with a clear mandate to increase the cyber resilience of the production and storage facilities. The talk will cover all aspects of a holistic change program, from people, over processes to technology, explaining how challenges of management support, budget allocation and business priorities were overcome.

Howest and the University of Ghent offer an expert class focused on Innovative Cyber Security for Industry and Logistics 4.0 (ICIL4.0) with a practical emphasis. It aims to clarify technical security measures, showcase state-of-the-art solutions like Zero Trust Architecture, and translate regulations like NIS 2 and the European Cybersecurity ACT into actionable guidance for Flemish companies. The class also highlights innovative network monitoring and ISOC techniques within industrial and logistics networks integrated into the test facility.

Bart Claeys will talk about why industrial transformation, particularly Industry 4.0 and 5.0, is crucial for European industries to thrive, attract young talent, and contribute to societal solutions. Digitalization, including AI and robotics, offers opportunities for innovation and optimizing human-machine interactions. To succeed in this transformation, industries must prioritize cyber resilience and adopt frameworks like IEC 62443 for secure digital adoption, ensuring competitiveness and sustainability.