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Unlocking the value of Big Data analytics in MedTech

By Riccardo Consonni

Mass customization, product innovation, digitalization, increased regulatory complexity and the rise of Internet of Medical Things are just some of the key trends that are transforming the Medical Device and Diagnostic (MD&D) industry.


The importance of taking the right decision, at the right time and faster than competition has never been greater for MD&D companies. Real-time and Big Data analysis is already a critical competitive differentiator today and it will only become more and more important in the future. Those manufacturers that do it right will improve their decision-making processes, with a clear impact on their ability to succeed above competitors.

But what are the key steps to compress the “time-to-insight” and enable Big Data intelligence?


  1. Digitalize manufacturing operations. With the rise of Big Data, the manufacturing mindset need to shift from managing documents and paper-based processes to managing digital systems that control operations across the enterprise in a smart way. Software like manufacturing execution systems (MES) ensure that operators and machines are right for the application and properly certified, material issue is controlled in real time, all pertinent data is captured, and procedures are enforced at the point of execution.

  2. Leverage on software technologies to transform manufacturing data into actionable information. The application of IoT and edge technologies is transforming automation. Production lines are generating huge amount of data like they have never done before. But can we take strategic decisions based on bits and bites coming from the machines? Modern and integrated MES collect and normalize raw data from the shop floor, contextualize them with meaningful and detailed manufacturing information and transform them into actionable insights.

  3. Integrate digital manufacturing technologies with Big Data applications for end-to-end visibility and smart decision making. The seamless integration between modern MES and Big Data applications pulls true intelligence into manufacturing and decision-making processes. It is in the hands of Enterprise Manufacturing Intelligence and Lifecycle Analytics systems to:
    • Integrate actionable insights from the shop-floor with other information and data lakes, like ERP data, product performances, complaints, return data, etc.
    • Transform this rich set of analytics into valuable KPIs and predictive learning.
    • Reveal root cause drivers of operational performance and product quality
    • Enable medical device and diagnostic managers to take the right decision at the right time and set the basis for manufacturing and product quality excellence.


Advanced analytics capabilities are at the hearth of the next generation Manufacturing Execution Systems for Medical Device and Diagnostic industry. Efficiently bringing MES insights and other IoT manufacturing data together means being able to identify unknown unknows from the data themselves.

At Siemens, we are setting the basis for this Big-Data transformation through an out-of-the-box packaged offering that activates predictive learning and advanced analytics.

If you want to learn more about our approach, join our on-demand webinar: “Unlocking the value of Big Data analytics in MedTech”.

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This article first appeared on the Siemens Digital Industries Software blog at https://blogs.sw.siemens.com/opcenter/unlocking-the-value-of-big-data-analytics-in-medtech/