The customer and the challenge

Creating a ground for innovation

The Turkish Employers’ Association of Metal Industries (MESS) represents the largest metal manufacturing companies in Türkiye. They’re committed to developing balanced and stable industrial relations while making the Turkish industry more competitive and productive not only in Türkiye but also globally. Employers need to adapt to constantly evolving technologies, focus on digital transformation initiatives and upskill their employees via training. MESS has established MEXT, the world’s largest and most comprehensive digital transformation and capability building centre located in Atasehir, Istanbul. It includes an ecosystem of more than 50 global technology providers, universities and institutions to support Turkish companies in their journey towards Industry 4.0.

Shaping the future of the industry

MEXT’s mission is to create the digital conditions essential for Turkish businesses to get the most out of the Industry 4.0 revolution by deploying the latest technologies. MEXT had the need for a low latency network combined with guaranteed bandwidth and fast data transfer to design processes for timely detection and intervention. This was key to increase efficiency while maximising quality, occupational health and safety. A 5G Mobile Private Network (MPN) is ten times faster than 4G, more reliable than Wi-Fi connectivity and is the most secure option to ensure seamless on-site communication. MEXT knew that having a 5G MPN infrastructure would enable their digital factory to support Turkish companies in revolutionising the industry.

Moving towards Industry 4.0 with 5G

MEXT has partnered with Vodafone Business to deploy a 5G-enabled Mobile Private Network in their technology centre. With this major step forward, MEXT has become the first facility in Türkiye to use this technology in a production environment which makes them stand out from similar tech centres in the country. Relying on Vodafone Business 5G MPN, they have developed five use cases on production lines in their digital factory. This has opened up new ways in investigating and evaluating the capabilities of next-generation mobile networks to provide a competitive advantage for the Turkish metal industry in the global arena.

How we helped them

No more quality issues

In the Assembly Preparation Station, the components to be assembled are prepared accurately and quickly by robotic automation and image processing technologies which rely on the uninterrupted connectivity provided by 5G. High-resolution images recorded with cameras are processed by artificial intelligence in real time, maximising speed and efficiency. Thanks to the Mobile Private Network, Autonomous Intelligent Vehicles (AIVs) taking part in intralogistics processes gain new functions in quality control and product traceability. High-speed mobile communication and edge computing technologies also play a major role in facilitating synchronous operations.

Safety and efficiency at speed

The Safe Area Violation Solution allows the detection of potential occupational safety issues in real time and reports them to the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) management system by using existing security cameras with MPN. The system determines which areas are safe, risky or forbidden to enter, and creates geofences to ensure efficient monitoring. At the same time, camera data is transferred to the server to send a warning as soon as a violation occurs. In another use case, the data collected from sensors and 360° cameras makes it possible for agile mobile robots to sense the environment and fulfil different tasks autonomously. Data is transmitted uninterruptedly and processed in real time with 5G MPN technology.

Paving the way for the metal industry

Vodafone Business 5G MPN has enabled MEXT to move the digital transformation of the Turkish industry to a new level and exploit the potential of Industry 4.0. Thanks to 5G MPN, connectivity issues can no longer stand in the way of digital innovation. MEXT can now carry out tasks and use digital assets that would help smart factories become more flexible, sustainable and productive in the future. “As MESS and Vodafone share a common goal regarding the digitalisation journey of our industry, we are pleased to take our partnership to the next level at MEXT,” affirms Özgür Burak Akkol, Chairman of the Board at MESS.