Towards the energy efficient future factory

Up to now, most factories and their processes were designed and constructed with the cost as the most important economic factor. However due to the increased changes in energy sector, the energy optimization should be another key indicator for cross layer optimization. In order to achieve this optimization, energy has to be measured locally and almost in real time, while manufacturing control activities should also be aware of the energy consumed. Furthermore higher-residing decision support systems and enterprise services, will take also into consideration the overall energy consumption, for each process and optimize globally and locally. These goals are assisted with the increasing automation within the factories that can provide better visibility and efficiency of the shop floor.