3defacto GmbH is a leading provider of design and product development services for mechanical engineering and plant technology. The company operates in industries such as pharmaceuticals, chemicals, food, building materials, automotive, as well as in special machinery construction with a specialization in pipe shops in the oil and energy sector. In order to reliably capture and evaluate measured values from their plants and make them available to their customers in real time, the service provider was looking for a suitable solution.
Existing third-party remote maintenance solutions were error-prone, difficult to operate, and complex in terms of licensing. In addition, they made secure access difficult for the customer IT. They therefore needed a modern, scalable, and user-friendly platform that optimizes support and processes, reduces costs for follow-up projects, and opens up new possibilities for data-based services.
To meet these requirements, the company opted for IXON Cloud – a comprehensive IoT platform that combines remote maintenance, data management, and customer support in one solution.
The challenge: dfficient remote maintenance and practical customer support
3defacto faced the task of finding a reliable and future-proof platform. The previous remote maintenance solutions were error-prone in practice, difficult to operate, and caused a high training effort. Added to this was complicated licensing as well as the difficult installation on the customer side, which further complicated secure access for the customers' IT departments. Furthermore, the company needed an end-to-end solution that not only enables remote maintenance but also integrates data management and service functions. The goal was to significantly shorten response times in service and to avoid costly downtimes.
At the same time, the platform had to be designed in such a way that it could be integrated in a standardized manner into different product lines and used scalably for all plants delivered in the future. Another important point was the ability to clearly trace causes of errors or quality problems in order to quickly identify operating errors and minimize liability risks. In addition, 3defacto wanted to use the captured machine data to dimension plant components more precisely and thus reduce costs in follow-up projects. Last but not least, the solution was to serve as the basis for a customer portal with reporting functions, thereby supporting the expansion of data-based services.
The solution: IXON Cloud Enterprise as a central platform
To meet the aforementioned requirements, 3defacto introduced IXON Cloud Enterprise. The platform combines secure remote maintenance, comprehensive data acquisition, and integrated service functions in one solution, thereby specifically supporting industrial automation and customer support.
A central component is the Remote Access, which is used in a standardized way for all machines. Integration into existing IT environments is straightforward, and access can be differentiated and controlled via role-based permissions. This enables protected, flexible access to machines worldwide.
In addition, IXON Cloud offers extensive functions for data acquisition and monitoring. Machine values are captured in real time, visualized, and provided in a structured manner. On this basis, evaluations and reports can be created that provide valuable information both for internal process optimization and for the customers. Push alarms ensure that deviations are detected immediately and downtimes are avoided. The precise data basis also makes it possible to dimension plant components more specifically in follow-up projects and thus save costs.
With the integrated Service Portal, customer support has also been raised to a new level. Via the directly integrated ticket function, support cases can be recorded, documented, and processed. This facilitates communication with customers and increases transparency in service operations.
Another advantage lies in security. IXON pursues a "Secure by Design" approach and is ISO-certified. The platform has comprehensive security documentation, and communication is encrypted via TLS. This means that both customer data and machine access are reliably protected.
In addition, the platform supports mobile use and provides additional functions such as documentation, reports, app integration, and even an online shop. For 3defacto, there is also the possibility of using the solution in its own corporate design as a white-label package.
The results: transparency, efficiency, and expanded customer support
Through the use of IXON Cloud Enterprise, 3defacto was able to significantly shorten response times in service and avoid downtimes. One example is real-time monitoring with push alarms: a motor blockage was detected immediately, so that an expensive downtime and a costly repair operation could be prevented.
The solution also proved valuable with another customer. A quality defect on a headrest machine at an automotive supplier could be quickly identified. The cause – a manual operating error – could be clearly proven. Without IXON, the error would have been discovered later, which would have meant costs and liability risks for 3defacto.
In addition to greater transparency and efficiency, the platform opened up new possibilities for expanding the service offering. With the integrated ticket function, customer support could be significantly improved, as support cases are centrally recorded and documented. Customers also gain direct insight into live data from their plants and thus have better control over production processes.
Another benefit results from the systematic use of the captured machine data. This serves as the basis for the more precise dimensioning of plant components in follow-up projects, which leads to noticeable cost savings. At the same time, the platform enables a standardized equipping of all delivered plants, thereby increasing scalability and efficiency.
Today, all plants delivered by 3defacto are connected to IXON Cloud. This has created a stable basis that goes beyond pure remote maintenance. The solution offers a secure connection to the machines, enables live access to operating data, and opens up potential for data-based services such as reporting and cloud integration.
Outlook: AI-upported Maintenance Based on IoT Data
Following the successful implementation of IXON Cloud, 3defacto is looking to the future and continuously developing the solution further. The use of artificial intelligence based on IoT data is planned in order to detect anomalies at an early stage, predict maintenance needs more precisely, and process support cases proactively. Historical machine data is to be used to identify patterns, classify anomalies, and dynamically adapt recommendations for action. The goal is predictive maintenance with higher availability, fewer downtimes, and efficient deployment planning. In the long term, NEXUS is also to serve as a central platform for all customer- and plant-specific information and digitally map the entire lifecycle.
- Data basis: IoT data from IXON Cloud, historical and in real time
- Target vision: predictive maintenance with higher availability and fewer downtimes
- Functions: anomaly detection, classification, maintenance recommendations, automatic ticket preparation
- Benefit in service: faster diagnosis, better deployment planning, shorter response times
- Benefit in projects: more well-founded dimensioning of plant components based on real operating data
- Architecture: IXON for connectivity and security, NEXUS for analysis, portal, and lifecycle services
