Remion participated in the Future Mobile Work Machine (FMWM) event at Tampere Hall on May 28–29, 2024. FMWM brought together manufacturers of mobile work machines, technology companies, and industry researchers to showcase demos and services, network, and discuss the future of the industry.

At the event, Remion presented its Remote Monitoring service together with Normet, a technology company specializing in mining and tunneling solutions.

“Normet has implemented remote monitoring at its control center in India. From there, the company monitors its customers’ equipment globally,” says Remion CEO Jukka Kivimäki.

The remote monitoring service provides real-time supervision, usage reports, and data-driven recommendations to help maximize equipment availability and optimize performance.

Normet’s own experts remotely oversee and guide local maintenance operations using up-to-date equipment usage and fault data.

Progress Toward Autonomous Mobile Work Machines

The event presentations offered valuable insights into the direction in which mobile work machine technology is evolving and how digitalization, electrification, artificial intelligence, augmented reality, and sustainability requirements will transform business operations and production environments in the coming years.

A central theme of the event was machine autonomy. Remion CTO Miika Okko highlighted a presentation by Agco that reflected many of the themes discussed by various equipment manufacturers.

“Pekka Ingalsuo from Agco outlined six key areas required for machine automation: route planning, vehicle control, obstacle avoidance, local navigation, process automation, and vehicle condition monitoring.”

Companies specializing in machine control systems were also present, developing driver-assistance technologies.

According to Okko and Kivimäki, autonomy—both of mobile work machines and production environments—was one of the most prominent themes at the event.

A Vision of an Autonomous Production Environment

A presentation by Konecranes CTO Franz Schulten introduced a vision of an Industrial Metaverse — a future production environment enabling dynamic collaboration between humans and machines — which sparked interest among the Remion team.

In the Industrial Metaverse, not only are devices autonomous, but the production facility itself operates autonomously by utilizing intelligent technologies and AR solutions.

“The remote monitoring service we presented at the event could be one of the tools within the Industrial Metaverse. It provides visibility into equipment condition and helps maintenance personnel and operators keep machines operating efficiently,” Kivimäki explains.

“At Remion, we have both the interest and the capability — along with a comprehensive understanding — to help build tools for future production environments that simplify customer operations and improve process efficiency,” Kivimäki continues.

“We have strong analytics and data modeling expertise that can support the development of autonomous production environments, for example in modeling the environment itself,” Okko adds.

Breaking Barriers in Mining: Normet Xrock and Remion Pioneer Autonomous Rock Breaking

In the depths of mining operations, rock breaking has always been one of the toughest challenges. Dangerous, unpredictable, and often a bottleneck that slows everything down, it has long demanded human skill in environments where safety is never guaranteed.
Normet Xrock, a global leader in rock-breaking solutions, set out to change that story. With its Xrock product line of breaker booms and advanced attachments, the company envisioned a future where technology could take on the danger, leaving people free to focus on higher-value work. The bold ambition: to create the world’s first autonomous rock-breaking system.

Read more

The Initial Hype Around Electrification and AI Is Fading — Safety and Sustainability Gaining Focus

According to the Remion team, last year’s discussions at the event focused more heavily on electrification.

“Now safety and sustainability were more prominent. Electrification is no longer a new concept — it’s already underway. It feels like companies are shifting their focus toward equipment safety and sustainable, responsible operations,” Kivimäki reflects.

Volvo’s Deputy CEO Carolina Diez Ferrer stated in her presentation that Volvo aims to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.

“Volvo aims to bring carbon-neutral enabling equipment to market by 2040, so that these machines would already be in operation ten years before the 2050 carbon-neutrality target,” says Okko.

“Hybrid solutions were also discussed. Pekka Ingalsuo from Agco noted that combustion engines cannot yet be completely replaced at this stage,” Okko continues.

Okko also observed that the initial excitement surrounding artificial intelligence has stabilized.

Machine information – concerning design models, manufacturing, remote monitoring and service – is typically dispersed in different enterprise systems. Data is collected but not systematically utilized by business driver. Digital twin combines all machine lifecycle data enabling new business models, digital services and new data optimized machine design methods.

How can machine manufacturers and end customers benefit from digital twin?

With actual and predicted machine data of digital twin the end customer can be informed of maintenance needs, improve customer process and decrease machine lifetime cost. For machine manufacturer digital twin enables increased maintenance business and new business models and digital services enhancing whole Industry 4.0 smart factory-readiness.

Remion is collaborating on digital twin project with Mantsinen Group

Remion is the supplier of remote monitoring for Mantsinen Group’s material handling machines. Now Remion also provides them tools to create digital twin environment which Mantsinen Group utilizes for their business model and digital service development.

Watch the video of the digital twin collaboration of Remion and Mantsinen

The video is produced by Business Finland.

Remion’s team was able to leverage its extensive technological expertise in an Industryhack co-creation project, where the host company Coherent sought solutions to enhance its welding process. In the challenge competition, Coherent—a provider of laser and photonics solutions—was looking for a partner to develop a next-generation laser welding system utilizing sensor data and artificial intelligence.

Remion claimed its first Industryhack victory in strong competition. In addition to Remion, three other Finnish AI specialist companies were selected from all applicants. The three-day challenge took place in early June.

Remion’s CTO, Miika Okko, is delighted with the team’s win. Expectations for the competition were high, and the initial outlook was positive.
– Coherent’s challenge focused on building an intelligent laser ecosystem, where our expertise and solutions were an excellent fit.

Coherent aims to deliver added value to its customers through a more precise and optimized welding process.

Miika Okko served as the team lead for Remion during Industryhack.

A Three-Person Team Built on Complementary Expertise

Remion’s competition team combined diverse expertise.
– Our CEO Jukka brought strong business insight into building a comprehensive solution tailored to the customer’s needs. Petri, who works as a specialist, has extensive experience in designing and technically implementing AI solutions. As team lead, I guided the collaboration throughout the process, Okko explains.
Okko himself has a broad background in AI research, which was also the subject of his doctoral dissertation.

From Intensive Ideation to a Structured Winning Solution

During the competition days, ideas evolved into a well-defined winning concept through intensive innovation, solution refinement, and mentoring.
– Ultimately, three interwoven factors led us to victory: identifying the core customer need, delivering an innovative technical implementation, and presenting the solution clearly and convincingly.

Through preliminary discussions, the team gained additional insights from the host company, helping them refine their direction and develop a highly targeted proposal addressing the customer’s needs.
– We were also able to leverage our Regatta® platform in the solution, enabling faster and more cost-efficient implementation.

Defining the solution architecture, outlining the implementation, and preparing the Proof of Concept descriptions required close collaboration—at times working late into the night.
– Assembling the concept into a visually compelling format is also crucial. A good solution alone is not enough—you must be able to communicate the solution and its benefits effectively, Okko emphasizes.

A new element in this year’s competition was a two-minute video presentation, through which each team had to showcase their solution in the final round.

Proven Long-Term Performance of Remion’s Solutions

One of the jury’s key justifications for selecting Remion in Coherent’s laser welding system development challenge was that Remion’s analytics and AI expertise and solutions have been proven effective over the long term. This makes it fast and straightforward for the company to move forward with implementing a comprehensive solution.

Remion has extensive experience in developing analytics solutions across various industrial sectors, including predictive maintenance, failure forecasting, alarm and vibration analysis, and production optimization.

Remion is an experienced industrial player in AI and analytics.
– We have predicted usage-based maintenance needs and identified machines and data collection units behaving abnormally.
– We also have strong expertise in statistical analysis of big data, as well as structuring and aggregating data. A comprehensive situational overview can be created, for example, by combining data from multiple machines, Okko explains.

A New Business Opportunity Can Be Found by Using Existing Data in a New Way

Remion’s CEO Jukka Kivimäki and Konecranes’ Matti Lehto, Director, Product Lifecycle, shared multiple perspectives on the business potential of IoT at the Aalto University DigiTwin workshop on September 17, 2019. The workshop is part of the DigiTwin project organized by Aalto University together with Konecranes, Remion, and other partner companies, and funded by Business Finland. The goal of the project is to strengthen the ecosystem built around digital twins in Finland.

We asked Matti Lehto how Konecranes has utilized IoT and digital twins so far in its global crane business, and how he sees their business potential both within the company and in Finnish industry more broadly. At the same time, we discussed the new opportunities created by digital twins.

Finding New Perspectives at the Edges of Core Business

Konecranes has been utilizing IoT and building IoT-based business for several years. Like Remion, Konecranes is also involved in the DigiTwin project by Aalto University and Business Finland, where, among other things, a digital twin of a crane has been developed.

According to Matti Lehto, from a business perspective, the most feasible ideas for applying digital twins or IoT emerge when staying close to existing business and searching for new business ideas at its edges.

“A business opportunity can be found by using data that has already been collected in a slightly different way than before. That brings you closer to practical value.”

In a hypothetical example, Lehto describes a crane moving high above a factory floor. Combined with a thermal camera, it could be used to detect the early stages of fires quickly and accurately. By utilizing location data, initial fire suppression could be precisely targeted at the affected area, instead of sprinklers spraying water everywhere. At the same time, the crane—connected to the network via a modem—could trigger a fire alarm.

“Sometimes an idea can be relatively easy to implement, but its profitability must of course be evaluated against the required effort and investments.

More Precise Information on Crane Usage and Components to Guide Sales

Konecranes utilizes digital twins in its service systems. Through them, fault data and usage data are collected from equipment in the field, including crane movements, accelerations, braking events, and loads. The equipment’s usage profile is used to optimize maintenance, enabling crane owners to receive service actions that best support the actual usage of their equipment.

According to Lehto, Konecranes aims in the future to better combine crane usage data with component-related information.

“When we gather statistical analysis from large numbers of different devices—identifying which components have performed well under certain conditions and usage levels—we can guide crane sales more effectively based on real-world data. Our customers would receive crane models, components, options, and accessories that truly fit their industry and application.”

Using Data to Guide Product Development

Konecranes also uses equipment data when developing the next generation of products.

“Based on data from equipment in use, we can evaluate how well our designed equipment, its features and components, and structural dimensioning have met actual usage needs, and which components have been prone to failure. We can further enhance this product development guidance by extending the evaluation to broader data samples,” Lehto explains.

“In product development, profitability must also be considered so that we do not develop equipment that is too expensive and uncompetitive. DigiTwin and IoT solutions must not significantly increase the price of the product being sold,” he adds.

Digital twins have also been used at Konecranes as defining design models for products. In some cases, simulation features have been added to these models, enabling the company to demonstrate crane performance precisely within specified limits.

“The Costs of IoT Components Can Change Rapidly”

According to Matti Lehto, Finland is still at an early stage in terms of IoT and digital twin opportunities.

“There are companies that have managed to make IoT profitable from a single use-case perspective, but relatively few have succeeded in leveraging it profitably at a broader scale. Of course, for a smaller company, even one successful use case can already represent good business.”

Lehto notes that the situation is interesting because the costs of elements required for IoT can change rapidly. As the implementation of digital twins or the collection of associated data becomes more affordable, commercialization becomes easier from a cost perspective.

“If technology develops in a certain direction and implementation costs decrease, companies may find themselves in a hurry to build the business capabilities needed to harness these emerging opportunities profitably.”

“Expanding into new areas of operation always causes internal transformation within a company, which may involve changes in job roles or the redirection of competencies,” Lehto reflects.

Remion is participating in Aalto University’s DigiTwin research project, where researchers and partner companies jointly develop IoT solutions to support Finnish industry in its digital transformation.

The DigiTwin workshop, held at Aalto University on September 17, 2019, is an open event for everyone interested in gaining insights, sharing experiences, and generating new business ideas enabled by the Internet of Things (IoT) and digital twins. A digital twin is a broad concept that combines multiple technologies, such as simulation, IoT, and artificial intelligence.

Register for the DigiTwin Workshop

During the morning session of the DigiTwin workshop, you will learn about the practical benefits of IoT and digital twins through presentations by invited speakers and DigiTwin project partners. From Remion, CEO Jukka Kivimäki will discuss the business potential of IoT and digital twins together with Matti Lehto, Program Manager of Lifecycle Process at Konecranes.

In the afternoon, the workshop program focuses on ideating new business opportunities based on participants’ goals and resources.

The workshop is organized by Aalto University, Konecranes, and Remion as part of the DigiTwin project funded by Business Finland. The event aims to strengthen the network built around digital twins in Finland.

In what ways can a digital twin be utilized in device design, product development, and business optimization? Answers to this question were explored from multiple perspectives—both research and industry—at the DigiTwin project demo day on January 18, 2019.

As one of the partner companies in Aalto University’s DigiTwin project, Remion also participated in the demo day, presenting a digital twin developed for Framery’s phone booth.

“A digital twin provides new insights into how phone booths are used, the user experience, and how people behave inside the booths. Product development teams can analyze this data and use it to further improve the phone booths,” says Miika Okko, Senior Solution Architect at Remion and developer of the Framery digital twin.

The digital twin has been under development for approximately one and a half years, with two phone booths involved in the demo phase. Data is collected on factors such as booth ventilation and lighting, usage rate, as well as user posture, activities, and overall user experience.

“The end user receives access to a comprehensive tool that allows each user to easily obtain exactly the information they need,” Okko explains.

Creating Commercial Opportunities Together with the Customer

The digital twin of Framery’s phone booth has generated tremendous interest. At the DigiTwin demo day, the presentation sparked several audience questions about commercialization possibilities, such as whether phone booth users could access data about their own usage.

“At this stage, Framery’s digital twin serves as an experimental platform that enables our customer to better understand what happens inside the booth through the collected data. After that, it is up to them to decide how to utilize the information and whether to build new business models around it,” says Remion’s CEO, Jukka Kivimäki.