Impact of Industry 4.0 on Manufacturers

By CIOReview | Monday, September 3, 2018

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Industry 4.0 is known as the fourth industrial revolution, and the name is assigned due to the ongoing trend of automation and data exchange in the manufacturing landscape. Its impact is also due to the advent of new disruptive technologies like the Internet of Things, robotics, AI, cognitive computing, and cloud computing.

The global technology analyst group International Data Corporation (IDC) forecasts that the total spending on the technology and services enabled business is predicted to cross $1.1 trillion by the end of this year worldwide. Industry verticals like process manufacturing and discrete manufacturing are expected to cross $333 billion. The IDC research says that these landscapes will invest most on the digital transformation and shift their focus on use cases and programs across every industry. Companies are spending on services in connectivity, IT infrastructure, and manufacturing their own in-house platforms to stay relevant in the digital economy and steer ahead of the market competition.

The primary objective of these industries in the high spending of digital transformation is to achieve smart manufacturing which consists of optimization of materials, automated operations, and smart asset management. There is also tremendous growth in the rate of adoption of automation and AI, but the investment in broader AI is yet to expand.

Manufacturers are investing in new systems to drive impact, improve efficiency, and also make their operations run better. It was earlier this year that the leading chocolate makers, Mars, introduced their automated handling and robotics systems at their factory in Boigny-sur-Bionee, France. The newly renovated facility is run by XPO Logistics and has given the organization an enhanced capability to the house as much as 10 million packages every year and also increased speed in preparation and distribution more than ever before.