Since its establishment in 1890, Kubota Group has been involved in the development of modern waterworks through the use of iron water pipes, increasing food production and saving labor through agricultural machinery, harmonizing humankind and the environment through environmental facilities, and has been providing a wide range of products and solutions. The group's vision is to be a "platform that sustains life," and seeks to solve social issues in the sectors that are essential for the survival of humankind - food, water, and the environment - in order to realize a sustainable society.
Going digital to solve maintenance, operation, and management issues of infrastructure facilities
Within Kubota Group, Kubota Environmental Engineering Corporation is responsible for the maintenance, operation, and management of Japan's critical water and waste-related infrastructure, including water treatment plants, sewage treatment plants, drainage pump stations, sludge reclamation facilities, and waste treatment facilities. Kubota Environmental Engineering Corporation is developing its business not only domestically but also globally in order to support peoples’ comfortable lifestyles while protecting the global environment.
The company has developed the "See Through Walls System" (hereby STWS), an inspection streamlining technology that utilizes Microsoft's head-mounted MR device "HoloLens 2". This STWS will be introduced on April 1st, 2024 for the drainage pump stations’ inspection project ordered by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) of Japan. The STWS is expected to contribute to preventive maintenance of drainage pump stations that protect our lives from typhoons and torrential rains by solving problems in infrastructure maintenance and operation.
Many of the drainage pump stations in Japan have deteriorated significantly since they were built during the period of rapid economic growth. It is estimated that by 2030, approximately 50%*1 of the pumping facilities will be 40 years old, which is the benchmark for renewal. In order to ensure the stable operation of these facilities amid a declining and aging workforce, advanced stock management and the introduction and utilization of digital technology are key factors.
The Kubota Group has prioritized DX as one of the main themes of its “Midterm Corporate Strategy 2025,” and has positioned 2024 as the "first year of AI" to promote further transformation through the use of data. Koichi Nakagawa, President of Kubota Environmental Engineering Corporation, discusses the importance of digital technology in his company from three perspectives.
“First, we believe that digital technology is an essential tool for passing on the business know-how we have accumulated over the years and the knowledge and experience of each and every one of our employees to the next generation. Second, the process of deriving optimal solutions for the maintenance, operation, and management of plant facilities requires analysis of accumulated data - but the amount of data is already beyond the scope of human processing, therefore the power of digital technology is indispensable. Third, we believe that data-based decision making is an important element in corporate management that leads to competitiveness," says Nakagawa.
Project to develop infrastructure maintenance management solutions leveraging HoloLens 2
It all began in 2022. The Kanto Regional Development Bureau of the MLIT had been conducting a trial of inspection streamlining technology since 2021 as part of its efforts to promote DX in the field of public infrastructure maintenance and management. They contacted Kubota with a technical inquiry regarding its efforts to improve the efficiency of inspection work and database registration of inspection results for machinery and equipment - The STWS development project was set in motion from then.
Kubota Corporation recognized the potential of HoloLens 2 to be used for its own services from its initial release, and shared information with other Kubota Group companies, including Kubota Environmental Engineering Corporation. Shunsuke Tanimoto, DX Planning Section 2, DX Promotion Department, Global ICT Division, Kubota Corporation, says;
“We have a strategic partnership with Microsoft to drive DX, and we are working on a project to collect all data into Microsoft Azure. Whenever we needed to use a new device within the group, HoloLens 2 was the most effective choice because of its compatibility with Azure and the security of the data. There is a need to get used to the usability of HoloLens 2, but that is the same with any device. Rather, I feel that the ease of data integration with Azure is a major advantage of HoloLens 2," Tanimoto assures.
When the MLIT contacted Kubota Environmental Engineering, the device was already being used in several internal projects at Kubota Corporation, making its reputation as an MR device mainstay.
Kazuya Hashizume, General Manager of the Pump Business Development Department of Kubota Environmental Engineering Corporation, was in a position to determine how HoloLens 2 could be used in the field. “When we were approached, we were already experimenting with inspection support using Microsoft Dynamics 365 Guides and Microsoft Dynamics 365 Remote Assist, which are 1st party applications for HoloLens 2. For this reason, we knew that HoloLens 2's MR technology, which can blend digital information in the real world, would be effective for inspection work, and that input work could be performed smoothly since it is hands-free, and that it could also be used for functions equivalent to those of a PC. Therefore, we were confident that we could meet the expectations of the MLIT," said Hashizume.
Thus began the first project in the Kubota Group to utilize HoloLens 2 in a system for external use.
Development faces obstacles
This project was divided into three levels according to the level of difficulty and was to be carried out in parallel. Level 1 was the construction of a simple system that uses the current inspection flow as it is, but with a new type of device which is HoloLens 2. Level 2 was the development of an in-house system to register inspection results. Level 3 was to develop a system that could be considered the embodiment of an industrial metaverse, in which HoloLens 2 could directly access the system and complete data registration.
Development proceeded smoothly and was on track for practical application of Level 1 and 2 as planned. However, a major hurdle to Level 3 came during the development stage of the inspection efficiency improvement system utilizing the HoloLens 2. Hashizume describes the tense situation at the time: "We were on the verge of having to cancel the use of HoloLens 2.”
STWS is based on a system in which the actual facility and the 3D data models are superimposed by HoloLens 2, and the areas to be inspected are displayed as speech bubbles, and the inspection and input work proceeds according to the display. However, they discovered that the amount of data, called ‘point clouds’, used to render the 3D data model was too large for HoloLens 2 to handle. “We were discussing the operation of HoloLens 2 with Microsoft and Kubota's DX Promotion Department, but we could do nothing but worry about the point cloud data processing problem," said Hashizume.
A savior emerges in a stagnant project, working in tandem with development
The project was stalled, but then a savior appeared. It was Meister Corporation, a Microsoft certified partner and a software company with extensive experience in providing facility management systems that utilize HoloLens 2. Hashizume recalls the moment he saw the glimmer of hope, saying, "It was a fateful encounter.”
Meister is a Hakodate-based software development and sales company. The company specializes in building facility management systems centered around customization of Microsoft's diagramming and vector graphics software Microsoft Visio, and developing solutions that incorporate 2D and 3D graphics into business systems utilizing HoloLens 2.
In the spring of 2022, Microsoft invited both Kubota Environmental Engineering Corporation and Meister, two companies that have been taking advanced initiatives, to a meeting to explain the capabilities of HoloLens 2 to the MLIT. During this meeting, Meister demonstrated their HoloLens 2 application, which allows users to view 3D city model data easily with HoloLens 2.
“In the industrial metaverse, the point cloud data size is inevitably larger due to the accuracy required to render the object. In most cases, it is too large to even open the file on a PC with normal specs, let alone on HoloLens 2," says Uichiro Nozawa, Managing Director of Meister Corporation.
Meister has developed a metaverse platform called ViXAM for business use. With ViXAM, users can leverage Microsoft Azure Remote Rendering service to render complex 3D models and project the rendered output onto HoloLens 2, even with data sizes beyond its processing capacity.
After seeing the demonstration, Hashizume felt that "this is it.” He immediately approached Meister for cooperation, and the two companies began working side-by-side to develop the product.
Demonstration through agile development - realizing the importance of hands-on experience
“Kubota Environmental Engineering's request was to use ViXAM as an inspection tool. The commercial version of ViXAM did not have inspection-like functions, so we first asked them to use it and then asked what functions and UI they needed or think that would be easy to use - we listened to each detail as we proceeded with development.” said Nozawa.
Nozawa also says that special attention was paid to the fact that the system would be handled by on-site inspection workers, who are not IT experts. “If the operability of the system deviated from what the field workers wanted, it would be difficult to make adjustments later, so we conducted agile development, bringing prototypes that were actually operable and making adjustments each time."
“Meister's development speed was really fast. They showed us the results and communicated with us each time. I was really surprised at how quickly they were able to implement our requests," says Hashizume. With a smile, Hashizume added that not only their knowledge and know-how backed by their solid background, but also their character and corporate culture were a good match for this project.
“The contact people at Kubota Environmental Engineering were very knowledgeable about the work in the field and had a clear picture of the business issues that needed to be improved. I feel that the key to success was the accurate and prompt feedback we received," said Nozawa. Kubota, which had never implemented a UI for inspection work on HoloLens 2 before, says that Microsoft gave them advice on each occasion and gave them new insights, and that they gained a lot from this project.
Having thus cleared the biggest obstacle, the STWS development project proceeded more smoothly than originally planned, and demonstration tests were repeated on site in preparation for its release in April 2024. As a result, they were able to reduce the time it used to take for compiling inspection reports by approximately 25%. In addition, the hands-free system allows both hands to move freely, so there are no obstacles in working with measurement equipment or climbing up and down the ladders, thus ensuring safety.
Hashizume, who has been observing the reactions of the inspection workers on site, says, "It is true that at first it took some time to get used to the device operation, but after repeating it two or three times, there was a moment when the work speed dramatically increased.” Just like learning how to use a PC keyboard or flick typing on a smartphone, the change in the way the inspections proceeded without any hesitation was remarkable to him.
Further leveraging digital technology to create a data-driven society
STWS will be used in the drainage pump stations’ inspection project ordered by the MLIT starting April 1st, 2024. Version upgrades will be implemented as required, and a worker support system utilizing ChatGPT is currently being tested. Once implemented, the system will be even more convenient for checking inspection procedures and troubleshooting during the work.
Regarding this project, Tanimoto evaluated, "I think everyone probably feels that HoloLens 2 is an exciting technology. The most important achievement was that we were able to take it from that stage to a point where it can really be used in the field." Pleased with the expanded possibilities of HoloLens 2, he also added, "The Kubota Group has an example of using HoloLens 2 as a training tool for repair work on agricultural machinery, but there is a difference in meaning between using it internally and using it at the customer's site. I think there is great significance in that aspect."
“Aside from this project, we have also announced a comprehensive platform for operation and maintenance optimization of water and wastewater facilities in 2023. In that project, we plan to use AI to analyze operation data accumulated in Azure to analyze changes in energy consumption and treatment status to support operations and predict malfunctions, etc. Integration with the HoloLens 2 solution developed in STWS is expected to further increase efficiency and reduce manpower," Nakagawa explained his vision. Nakagawa also revealed that he is considering horizontal deployment to water purification plants and waste incineration plants.
Hashizume said, "Until now, we have relied on the knowledge of our predecessors to build our society. From now on, we will build a sustainable social environment by making decisions based on data, and not only on the knowledge of our predecessors. I believe that the time has come for us to do so," emphasizing the importance of creating a data-driven society.
As a partner in supporting future social infrastructure together
In closing the interview, Hashizume said, "As the frequency of disasters such as typhoons and rainstorms increase, it is our common belief that digital technology can contribute to disaster mitigation in areas where human intervention is not possible. We hope that Microsoft will stand by that belief and further evolve it," said Hashizume, expressing his expectations for Microsoft.
Tanimoto, who paved the way for this project in collaboration with Microsoft, added, "I think the key to the future will be data. We have full confidence in Microsoft in terms of data and AI, and we hope that we will be able to work together to improve the efficiency of the entire company and develop solutions for our customers," calling for further collaboration.
We, Microsoft, are pleased to work with Kubota Environmental Engineering and the Kubota Group to contribute to the maintenance and improvement of social infrastructure and the creation of a sustainable society, and we are once again strongly motivated to support their innovation from a digital perspective.
*1: Source: "Report: The ideal state of river machinery and equipment" (Council for Social Infrastructure Development, Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism)
https://www.mlit.go.jp/policy/shingikai/content/001493319.pdf
“First, we believe that digital technology is an essential tool for passing on the business know-how we have accumulated over the years and the knowledge and experience of each and every one of our employees to the next generation.”
Koichi Nakagawa, President, Kubota Environmental Engineering Corporation
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