To say that Industry 4.0 has momentum would be a significant understatement.
With an estimated 160.74 billion market size, growing to 885 billion by 2034, the great leap forward in manufacturing brought by machine learning, AI, and the Internet of Things is clear to see.
So what is Industry 4.0? And how will a new digital strategy impact your business?
In today’s blog, we’ll cover:
- What is Industry 4.0?
- Why is Industry 4.0 important for you?
- Industry 4.0 in supply chain management
- How to become part of Industry 4.0
- mlean & Industry 4.0
Let’s take a look!
What is Industry 4.0?
Though by now a well-worn subject for many in manufacturing, it’s understandable if you’re a little unclear on the exact meaning of ‘Industry 4.0’.
The manufacturing sector as a whole remains relatively technologically underdeveloped. Though around 80% of US-based firms are now implementing a digital strategy, companies and individual plants across the world still lack a tech edge.
So it’s worth recapping what exactly Industry 4.0 is, primarily to prepare yourself and your factory for the transition that will soon become mandatory for any business that wants to stay competitive.
In short, Industry 4.0 describes how manufacturers will work once new technology has been adopted and embedded within their processes.
This includes robotics, smart connected tech, AI, and a whole host of new tools and enhancements that promise boosted productivity, efficiency, and profitability.
The Industry 4.0 factory is connected from top to bottom. Its workforce and machinery feed into data stores that learn from operations and suggest improvements.
Factories in a group share best practices gleaned from the field, improving operations across the corporate level.
New hardware is combined with software platforms that allow managers and workers to get more from labour and materials.
It’s a whole new way of doing business, even if your product and personnel remain the same.
Which brings us neatly on to our next question.
Why is Industry 4.0 important for you?
We’ve all seen how technology has captured everyone’s imagination. You only have to spend a few minutes on LinkedIn to find a multitude of opinions and stories about how AI and digital tech are changing the business landscape.
As we’ve noted, so far the manufacturing industry is a little behind others in making use of these new tools.
But it’s critical you get a handle on them now before it’s too late.
Think about your nearest competitor. Now imagine they start a 6-month project to embed a new AI-powered software in their lines to streamline production and reduce waste.
The impact might not be felt overnight, but their newfound agility will mean they’re much better placed to take advantage of new market opportunities or to navigate sudden crises more safely.
In time, your new competitor can expect productivity gains of around 10% thanks to emerging technologies.
And adopters of digital tech are more likely to predict revenue growth of 10% or more, meaning that your competitor will be gaining a key competitive advantage in the long run.
Even if the upfront costs of implementing technology seems prohibitive right now, Industry 4.0 and its potential should be very high on your priority list moving forward.
Industry 4.0 in supply chain management
Let’s take a look at how Industry 4.0 could transform your operations from office to shop floor and beyond.
Clarity of information
By connecting your materials and processes through digital technology, you’re making your factory a farm for data.
Over 70% of businesses are planning to invest more in data management tools over the next 2 years. And for manufacturers, you can see why.
With a digital information management system, every sensor you have across your line is gathering real-time insight. And this insight is being collected in a platform that not only makes this information available when you need it but is able to handle a lot of the analysis itself.
Information management is no longer a full-time job. It’s just another byproduct of a connected system.
This will have a huge impact on the culture of your company as well as its material effects.
Yes, you’ll be able to use insights to reduce waste, but more broadly, having reliable information across your whole line will make every decision-making process data-driven.
This leads us onto the second benefit you’ll get from your new 4.0 plant.
A stitched-up supply chain
This wealth of information you’re now benefitting from has effects beyond the physical production space.
When your product makes its way to market, you can much more effectively respond to how the market receives it.
Is Head Office reporting higher demand for one variant over another? Is one region or supplier performing better than another?
Insights like these can be acted upon much more quickly and allow your company to take full advantage of market knowledge in a leaner way.
For 55% of companies, improving manufacturing and supply chain visibility is the number 1 priority. And Industry 4.0 tech helps deliver this visibility.
When your hardware and labour are connected to smart software, you can much more easily move from start of production processes to quality control, ensuring your line is optimised at every step.
And this allows you to take full advantage of a core practice perfect for Industry 4.0.
Continuous improvement
Juggling analogue displays, lengthy reporting cadences, paper-based monitoring systems, and poorly deployed staff has kept continuous improvement practices out of reach for many factories.
For too long, the headaches of running such a system outweighed the potential benefits.
Thanks to Industry 4.0 tech, you could implement continuous improvement practices without the limitations of analogue technology.
As we discussed, your information gathering is now top-notch, allowing you to spot where to make adjustments.
But continuous improvement isn’t just about tightening up loose ends. It’s also about unlocking the talent you have at your disposal.
One-size-fits-all onboarding and training produces an uneven workforce. And standardisation without employee input weakens morale.
Digital tech that helps upskill your workers, and a program for continuous improvement that values their input, means you’re getting the natural benefits of enhanced tech and the added bonus of incentivised, well-deployed staff.
How to become part of Industry 4.0
You might be sold on the benefits of Industry 4.0, but have no idea where to start. This is very common.
Whatever your level of tech maturity, you need to lay the groundwork first to allow new tech to bed into your processes without too much disruption.
Let’s go through a few pointers to get you started. And it starts with a very important question.
How well do you know your factory?
No large-scale upgrade of your tech infrastructure should happen unless you have a very clear picture of your factory as a whole.
You need to prioritise some metrics to begin with, otherwise the effort will be unfocused and less likely to have a measurable impact.
Get a bird’s eye view of your operations. Pull in reports from different sections of your line. Meet with other stakeholders.
You’ll be certain to find at least one priority area to fix. From here, you’ll find a multitude of tools and options to get started.
To avoid feeling overwhelmed, here’s your first port of call.
Create a scaffold
If you want to update your machinery, or even your productive processes, you need to have a digital scaffold to help link your parts and lines together.
In other words, you’ll need some software.
Industry 4.0 software is what allows you to get up to date information from different parts of your factory, becomes your machine for reporting, and is what your workers will interact with on a daily basis.
This software can have many different purposes, depending on what you want to achieve. For instance, if you want to standardise your factory’s work, you’ll need a tool for that.
If your goal is to correct issues in your start of production, you’ll need a different tool for that.
The same principle applies to auditing, shop floor management, or any other frontline process you want to change.
Some software specialises in handling one process, and others take a more comprehensive approach.
Make sure you pick one that fits your circumstances. Soon, it’ll be an indispensable part of your daily operations.
Always measure results
It takes courage to be a pioneer. This applies just as much to the industrial environment as anywhere else.
If you introduce some new technology, new processes, or new systems of work, you’re putting your head above the parapet.
Senior stakeholders are likely to lose patience with something new if it’s not supported by evidence. The pull of ‘if it ain’t broke don’t fix it’ can be too tempting, especially when shareholders want to see consistent returns.
So it’s on you to record and measure results regularly, and really allow your new technology to speak for itself.
Know that any investment will be expected to produce a return.
You just need to have faith that, after an initial bedding-in period, your new innovation will produce some excellent results.
Get everyone engaged
As we’ve mentioned, Industry 4.0 isn’t just about technology. It’s also about creating a better relationship between your factory and its workers.
If you plan on introducing a new tool or process, be mindful of the people that will be working with it.
Your new project will feel like an imposition if staff aren’t bought in. So make them understand that they’re just as much a part of it as you.
From the start of implementation, be open to new ideas. Listen to your frontline staff. Their insights will help you make the best use of your tools, and will help you produce the reports and feedback that will help you convince senior management of the work you’re doing.
mlean & Industry 4.0
We’ve been on the frontlines of Industry 4.0 from the beginning.
Our lean manufacturing software, the mlean Production System (mPS), is currently helping over 400 factories grasp the gains of digital technology, from start of production to maintenance.
It’s a modular system designed to fit the needs of your factory, no matter your goals.
To find out more, book a discovery call with us to find out how we can adapt the mPS to your needs.
