Nowadays, the importance of smart manufacturing is undeniable. Cutting-edge technologies like IIoT, 5G, and AI consistently demonstrate their value in smart manufacturing by enhancing production efficiency, ensuring quality, and increasing revenue while reducing costs.

Amid significant shifts in the global economic environment, many companies choose to stay put and try to protect their positions in the status quo. However, this leaves them exposed to the risk of being disrupted, as those companies that are lagging in their digital journeys are more likely to fall prey to competitive pressures. It is more important than ever for companies to focus on innovation in existing or new products and services and build new business models.

Given the list of Industry 4.0 priorities, where will your organization be investing the most?

Why should companies want to move toward transformative innovation? Research shows that typically two years are enough to observe initial financial impacts, from digital initiatives, related to developing new products, services, and business models.

Smart Manufacturing embodies a holistic, top-to-bottom approach that drives operational excellence by harnessing the power of cutting-edge Industry 4.0 technologies and advanced analytics. All its elements are then seamlessly integrated into a manufacturing strategy that provides a cohesive vision and roadmap, ultimately enhancing efficiency and effectiveness across all manufacturing operations.

The options are limitless, they range from manufacturing strategy through operational improvements, such as lean six sigma to reduce waste and inefficiencies, operations analytics to enable data driven decisions, or setup of smart facilities, flexible systems that self-optime and learn real-time. Furthermore, it can be enhanced by predictive maintenance, which bridges the physical machines with analytics that improve maintenance efficiency or enterprise digital tracking allows for visibility through assets and their movement in real-time.