Bridging the Labor Gap in Japan: Digital Transformation with Nippon RAD and Advantech’s Solutions

Despite Japan's leadership in industrial automation and robotics, labor shortages remain a challenge. The Recruit Works Institute (RWI) predicts a shortage of 11 million workers by 2040, with nearly 30% of the population over 65 by 2042. However, with a well-defined strategy, manufacturers can enhance efficiency despite workforce constraints.

• Region: Japan
• End User: Shinnichi Kogyo Corporation (シンニチ工業株式会社)
• System Integrator: Nippon RAD

According to Mr. Takayuki Otsuka, CEO of Nippon RAD, many manufacturers still rely on manual, paper-based data collection, requiring operators to walk the shop floor, record data, and later input it into Excel spreadsheets—a time-consuming process prone to errors. Moreover, PLC, HMI, MES, and ERP systems often lack seamless integration, and manufacturers may not have the budget for full-scale digital upgrades.

To address these challenges, Nippon RAD’s IoT and enterprise solutions teams developed an end-to-end service, leveraging Advantech’s IoTSuite and their expertise in IoT and system integration to drive digital transformation.

To remain competitive in the face of labor shortages, improving productivity and efficiency is essential. This not only reduces costs but also optimizes production processes. Recognizing this need, Shinnichi Kogyo Corporation (シンニチ工業株式会社)—a leading manufacturer of steel, stainless steel, and titanium pipes—commissioned Nippon RAD to develop an application that enables the automatic digital transfer of production data from machines to a real-time dashboard and their ERP system. Their primary objectives were time savings, enhanced data transparency, and real-time situational analysis.

In response, Nippon RAD proposed its Konekti EX, a solution developed using Advantech’s IoTSuite, ECU-1051, and ADAM-6051, along with the i-Reporter Digital Form Solution. To enable automatic data collection and aggregation from production machines to Shinnichi Kogyo’s ERP system, Nippon RAD provided an integration service that connected Konekti EX, i-Reporter, and the ERP system’s API. This comprehensive solution delivered automated data acquisition, real-time monitoring, and seamless cross-system integration.

For machines equipped with PLCs, ECU-1051 IoT gateways were recommended, leveraging built-in WebAccess/SCADA to automatically collect production and operational data. For machines without PLCs, ADAM-6051 I/O modules were introduced to track machine operation times. Both ECU-1051 and ADAM-6051 integrated seamlessly with i-Reporter, which also featured a manual input interface for capturing data that could not be collected automatically—such as production output, defect counts from non-PLC machines, and abnormal events detected on machine HMIs.

To further streamline operations, Nippon RAD replicated Shinnichi Kogyo’s paper-based forms into i-Reporter, ensuring a smooth connection between production work orders, output tracking, and abnormal condition reports. The collected data was transmitted to Konekti EX, allowing office staff and administrators to gain comprehensive visibility into daily operations through IoTSuite’s intuitive dashboard and detailed graphical and text-based reports.

Following the successful implementation of Nippon RAD’s solution, real-time data acquisition and analysis provided accurate records of uptime, downtime, production counts, defect counts, defect causes, and machine errors. These insights were displayed through intuitive dashboards, enabling Shinnichi Kogyo to take immediate corrective actions, thereby improving machine visibility, production performance, and quality inspections. Additionally, the project resulted in significant time savings—eliminating 1,020 hours previously spent on paperwork and manual data entry.

With multiple production sites, Shinnichi Kogyo plans to expand deployment to additional locations following the final project evaluation. Additionally, they aim to digitize various paper-based documents using i-Reporter, integrating them with IoTSuite in the near future.

Looking ahead, Mr. Otsuka shared his vision: "We want to establish Shinnichi Kogyo as a benchmark project for manufacturers, given the growing market demand driven by labor shortages in Japan’s manufacturing sector. Throughout this project, we have developed a highly competitive end-to-end solution. Now that everything is in place, we can deploy it for other manufacturers in a much shorter timeframe."

1. Eliminate working hours on paperwork and manual data entry.
2. Automated data acquisition and aggregation and digitalized report forms.
3. Identify production issues in real time.

The WISE-IoTIoTSuiteboosts operational efficiency and scalability, offering real-time insights tailored to diverse industries. Designed for adaptability, it empowers productivity and accelerates digital transformation, helping businesses thrive in today’s fast-evolving industrial landscape.

“ We want to establish Shinnichi Kogyo as a benchmark project for manufacturers, given the growing market demand driven by labor shortages in Japan’s manufacturing sector. Throughout this project, we have developed a highly competitive end-to-end solution. Now that everything is in place, we can deploy it for other manufacturers in a much shorter timeframe. ”︁ - Mr. Takayuki Otsuka, CEO of Nippon RAD