Industry Operations Notes
Industry Operations Notes is a series on equipment operation and monitoring. It runs from safety inspections and equipment registers to condition-based maintenance, acoustic and vibration signals, lockout and tagout, and moving from pilot to operations.
Workplace Safety Design: Forklift Lanes, Walkways
On September 10, 2026, Korea's Ministry of Employment and Labor (MOEL) and the Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency (KOSHA) announced support for workplace safety design…
Korea's M.AX Manufacturing AI: Where to Start
Korea's manufacturing AI transformation policy, M.AX, picked up pace in the second half of 2026. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources aims to reach 220 AI factories by…
EU AI Act Delay and Korea's AI Basic Act in 2026
The EU AI Act's high-risk obligations were due to apply on August 2, 2026. They now apply from December 2, 2027 for standalone high-risk AI and from August 2, 2028 for high-risk…
DCASE 2026 Machine Sound Anomalies in Field Noise
DCASE Task 2, the research challenge on finding machine faults by sound, turned its 2026 edition toward real-world noise. This year's change: two-channel audio recorded at the…
Confined Space Gas Testing Rules and Records
Before work in a confined space, Korean rules require employers to measure oxygen and hazardous gas concentrations and confirm the air is acceptable: oxygen at 18% or more and…
PHM 2026 Data Challenge: Gear Damage Estimation
The PHM Society's 2026 North America data challenge asks teams to estimate gear tooth damage from inexpensive sensor data. Tooth images are provided only for the training…
Smart Safety Equipment Subsidy 2026: What to Check
Korea's smart safety equipment subsidy accepts applications on a rolling basis in 2026. It covers up to 80% of the agency-assessed cost, capped at KRW 30 million per workplace…
Industrial Monitoring: From PoC to Operations
Moving a monitoring pilot into operations requires alert-review and inspection procedures, plus owners for sensor and system maintenance. Without them, technical validation is…
Where to Process Factory Data: Edge and OT/IT
Choose where to process and store equipment data according to latency and response requirements, network conditions, retention needs, and access control. Use these requirements to…
LOTO for Maintenance and Cleaning: Restart Checks
After a machine stops, power can return or stored pressure or gravity can move its parts. A coworker unaware that maintenance is underway may also restart it. Lockout/tagout…
Choosing Between Acoustic and Vibration Monitoring
Choose signals for rotating-equipment monitoring according to the expected change, its location, and the maintenance decision it supports. Neither acoustic nor vibration…
Condition-Based Maintenance: What to Decide First
Before starting condition-based maintenance, define who will make each maintenance decision when a signal changes. Without that decision process, collected data is difficult to…
2026 Safety Inspection Expansion: Equipment First
On June 26, 2026, Korea added certain mixers, crushers, and grinders meeting specified design and size criteria to its mandatory safety inspection program. Update the equipment…
