INTERVIEW FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE April 2024 57 lenge is Metris, an all-encompassing digital platform developed originally for the pulp and paper industry, now adapted to meet the unique needs of the feed sector. "Metris represents our commitment to innovation and excellence, providing a suite of automation and digitalization solutions that address the critical challenges of maintenance, reliability, and plant operations," explains Dr. Nazari. With over 15 years of development, Metris is the result of continuous efforts to advance the process industry through digital technologies. “The motto of our campaign is NEVER STAND STILL. This is because we believe the feed industry should not stand still when it comes to adopting new digital technologies and should not wait. We want to be a pioneer in capturing the value these technologies offer to our industry.” A TURNKEY APPROACH TO FEED PROCESSING Underpinning ANDRITZ's digitalization strategy is a turnkey approach that encompasses a comprehensive suite of control solutions. "Our aim is to offer a seamless, holistic solution that not only addresses current needs but also anticipates future challenges," Nazari states. This approach is backed by a global team of over 2,200 engineers dedicated to automation and digitalization, continuously working towards the development & implementation of state-of-the-art solutions. “In 2019, ANDRITZ won the Disrupt mining competition for bringing a practical way to utilize artificial intelligence in mining industry, by 2023, out global automation and digitalization was recognized as the largest system integrator globally by System Integrator Giants Magazine. Just recently, we won the 2024 Microsoft Intelligent Manufacturing Award in the category of disrupt.” VISION 2027: THE ERA OF AUTONOMOUS FEED PLANTS A significant milestone Dr. Nazari discusses is ANDRITZ's ambition to achieve fully autonomous feed plant operations by 2027. "Imagine a feed plant where every decision, every operation, is optimized and controlled by advanced digital systems," he envisions. While acknowledging the financial and technological hurdles in achieving Level 5 autonomy—where robots undertake equipment maintenance—Dr. Nazari is confident in reaching Level 4 autonomy. This level of automation will ensure decisions in the control room are made swiftly and accurately, thanks to a sophisticated digital infrastructure. BOLD SOLUTIONS WITH BOLD ADVANTAGES "Our customers have reported output increases ranging from 7% up to 16% while seeing a dramatic reduction in process deviations and abnormalities." Dr. Nazari is quick to highlight the tangible benefits that the Metris Digital Platform offers to the industry, focusing on operational efficiency, resilience, and readiness. "Our digitalization suite is truly revolutionizing operations, providing a holistic, turnkey approach to feed processing and reducing variability in operation by 60%. Leveraging SMART Diagnosis technology, our customers have seen a reduction in maintenance costs and a significant improvement in production consistency and efficiency.” On operational resiliency, Dr. Nazari explains the proactive measures ANDRITZ employs to safeguard operations against cyber threats. "Through OTORIO, ANDRITZ’s dedicated in-house provider, we ensure comprehensive protection for our
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