Leah Gourley is a Digital Content Marketing Specialist based out of PTC's Boston office. She enjoys creating and sharing content surrounding the latest technologies that are transforming industries, including augmented reality and the industrial internet of things.
Customer expectations continue to rise as they look for faster turnaround times and high-quality service. Companies are now leveraging condition monitoring solutions, including remote diagnostics technology, to provide customers with unique offerings, which will in turn help maximize the return on their maintenance investment.
What is remote diagnostics?
Remote diagnostics is the act of diagnosing an issue or problem from a distance. In a manufacturing setting, motion, temperature, and pressure sensors connected to a variety of assets across the plant send data to the network. This data is processed through an industrial internet of things (IIoT) gateway and transformed into actionable business insights before being submitted to an online dashboard. The detailed, real-time insights into the running of your assets can help boost machine uptime long term.
Leverage remote diagnostics to transform your service model
A remote diagnostics platform will effectively lengthen equipment lifecycles. How? Gain a better understanding of the capabilities below.
Enable immediate fixes
Remote diagnostics allow service technicians to access machine information at any time in the field. They can receive alerts and updates based on the real-time data and perform repairs before a threat of a failure. Remote access to step-by-step procedural guides could be provided to technicians to resolve these issues.
Proactively maintain machines
The data acquired through connected devices can be fed through machine learning algorithms to determine patterns of when a machine is likely to break down in the future. Service technicians can then proactively maintain equipment without waiting for signs of recognized wear mechanisms such as abrasion, corrosion, erosion, etc.
Enable new service models
Remote diagnostics technology serves as another way to ensure a successful, connected-service strategy. By enabling remote diagnostics, customers can not only access their machine health to diagnose any issues, but they also are provided with the tools to take corrective action. Customers can use key information to determine when to perform maintenance, such as adjusting machine settings to prevent future breakdowns—all without the need for an on-site expert. Not only does this improve customer satisfaction, but also increases asset lifecycles.
Start utilizing remote diagnostics
As you look to tap into the efficiency-boosting potential of remote diagnostics, you’ll want to look into solutions that offer both service technicians and customers several key features, including:
• A complete interactive list of all the assets under control
• A detailed dashboard with asset information and performance data
• Alerts generated when any key thresholds are exceeded or if a failure is likely
• Remote access to technicians to troubleshoot or identify operation problems
With these tools at your fingertips, you can leverage remote diagnostics capabilities to transform your service model. As a result, your service teams will consistently reduce and prevent downtime on top of improved first-time fix rates. Learn how PTC’s Asset Advisor can help you start benefiting from remote diagnostics right away.
