OPTIMIZING PRODUCTION WITH INDUSTRY 4.0
How is industry transforming?
People have been talking about Industry 4.0 since the beginning of the 21st century. Some say we already reached Industry 4.0 a long time ago, yet many companies are still busy with the transformation associated with the digital revolution. Others are already talking about Industry 5.0.
What changes do Industries really need to be prepared for?
WHAT MAKES INDUSTRY 4.0 POSSIBLE?
- Until now, it was possible for people to communicate and cooperate with a machine or a production plant.
- With Industry 4.0, however, it is also possible for machines to communicate and cooperate with each other directly (without the "detour" via humans)
HOW CAN THIS BE USED?
Allowing individual products to communicate independently with machines and systems opens up unimagined opportunities for optimization throughout the entire product life cycle, including logistics.
- With the help of Industry 4.0 technologies, the entire industrial production process is simplified, from the development of a product to its manufacture, use, maintenance, and recycling.
GERMANY AND INDUSTRY 4.0: STILL ACQUAINTANCES OR ALREADY FRIENDS?
If you look around in German industry, you will notice that there are already many products and solutions on the market that support standards such as OPC UA, io-Link, TSN, or 5G. Some of these are already being widely implemented. Nevertheless, there are still a lot of areas of German industry which could benefit from implementing Industry 4.0 solutions.
The reasons why Germany is lagging behind in Industry 4.0 and how a culture of collaboration can help us move forward was discussed by Jan Veira in a podcast with Dr. Wolfgang Huhn.
THE CHALLENGE: UNDERSTANDING INDUSTRY 4.0
The idea behind Industry 4.0 has enormous potential for industrial production, especially in Germany. Industry 4.0 can advance automation in production, through the use of available data with the help of advanced analytics and intelligent assistance systems. Companies strongly represented in Germany have the opportunity to remain innovative global market leaders in the future through Industry 4.0, especially in the fields of
- automation,
- mechanical engineering and
- plant engineering.
But Industry 4.0 is not yet “finished” – there is still a lot to do: the challenges of Industry 4.0 are
- the development of technical standards and norms,
- data security and cybersecurity, and
- the reorganization of products.
In order to overcome these difficulties, a major gap must first be closed: many companies have a lot of catching up to do in terms of employee training and continuing education on the topic of Industry 4.0.
Only if the employees
- understand Industry 4.0 and
- are familiar with its technologies,