This paper concerns how to apply machine vision and virtual-reality technologies into industrial robots and Internet of Things and to combine big data and cloud computing to construct a parallel manufacturing infrastructure. A worldwide flexible supply chain of footwear and garment industries is introduced to demonstrate the workflow and efficiency of parallel manufacturing. Firstly, a virtual factory is constructed in the cloud, where management policies and decision control data are synchronized with the data generated by highly automated production equipment in the workshop. The virtual factory, executing in parallel with the physical one, supplies tested and optimized decisions and guides the production process in physical factories. To provide worldwide service, a global and distributed cooperative production management platform is built based on the industrial Internet of Things, namely CIXING's cloud manufacturing platform. It operates with low production cost, high work efficiency and reduced labor numbers. It has also been listed as one of the national intelligent manufacturing pilot demonstration project by the Chinese Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.

parallel manufacturing  /  textile,footwear and garment industries  /  virtual factory  /  large-scale flexible production