The award being presented to Antonio Latella, smart sensors product owner, and Luca Bergantini, business unit manager of CNC machining centres at SCM Group.
PREDICTING a fault before it occurs, increasing production efficiency, and turning maintenance into a proactive service: this is the vision behind “Smart Spindle”, the innovation developed by SCM Group and recognized at the 19th edition of SMAU, held in Milan on 5-6 November.
A world leader in technologies for processing a wide range of materials and in industrial components, SCM Group has reimagined one of the key elements of its CNC machines — the electrospindle — turning it into an intelligent node within a broader ecosystem of smart services.
Developed in collaboration with Hiteco, a Group company, the electrospindle is equipped with a smart control unit that collects and interprets data from sensors monitoring critical parameters such as temperature, vibration, and tool change cycles.
This data is processed in real time and shared with SCM Group’s control room, where AI models analyse trends and detect anomalies. The system can anticipate faults, automatically open service tickets, and trigger predictive interventions before the customer even becomes aware of a problem.
All of this takes place in full compliance with data governance and transparency principles: data remains the property of the customer, is anonymized, and used exclusively to optimise performance and service quality.
From Machine to Service: A New Business Model
“Smart Spindle” represents not only a technological evolution but also a strategic shift in SCM Group’s digital transformation and servitisation journey. From being a machine manufacturer to becoming a promoter of an ecosystem of intelligent services, the company is moving toward a model that enhances data sharing, collaboration among industrial partners, and continuous value creation throughout the product’s lifecycle.
The result is up to 30% reduction in downtime, improved machining quality, and a significant decrease in operating costs.
The “Smart Spindle” project reflects SCM Group’s vision of an increasingly connected, data-driven, sustainable, and customer-oriented industry — where collaboration between companies, technologies, and end users generates shared and lasting value.
The SMAU Innovation Award was collected on November 5 by Antonio Latella, product owner smart sensors, and Luca Bergantini, business manager for CNC machining and drilling centres at SCM Group.
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