The Fourth Industrial Revolution – What is Industry 4.0?
Robots move autonomously through factory halls and transport materials from point A to point B. Products communicate with machines, which make decisions and initiate their next production step autonomously. When devices determine that they need to be serviced in a timely manner, they automatically notify the technical service department. Centralized controls are a thing of the past.
Industry 4.0 is the Internet of Things for production, and transparently connects the entire value chain. It is therefore also referred to as the "Industrial Internet of Things", or IIoT for short. Digitalization and the use of new technologies have since paved the way for intelligent machines that exchange information with each other and organize themselves. Processes across the entire value chain are connected and can be automated.
By linking the physical and digital world, production becomes more efficient, more flexible and more cost-effective. These possibilities give rise to far-reaching changes, both for companies and their employees. That is why the term Industry 4.0 stands for the fourth Industrial Revolution. After the steam engine (Industry 1.0), assembly lines (Industry 2.0), computers and electronics (Industry 3.0), intelligent, connected systems are now the fourth milestone of industrialization.
Connected production becomes a strategy – Digitalization 4.0
Digitization in Industry 4.0 does not mean exploiting everything that is technically possible at all touchpoints. On the contrary, companies must fully digitize their production or manufacturing to successfully hold their own in the market and to be able to act flexibly – the competitive pressure on the international stage is great. Developing strategies for successful change management, optimizing processes, and saving costs is therefore part of the supreme discipline of "Digitalization 4.0". Intelligent, connected systems enable companies to produce even smaller quantities based on individual customer requirements for a profit. This gives them the chance to stand out from "low-cost suppliers" who position themselves in the market with mass production.
Demographic change also requires production to be optimized. After all, our society is becoming increasingly older, while the amount of employed people is reducing – something that cannot be fully offset by immigration either. Experts therefore agree that if we want to maintain our prosperity, we must make the world of work even more efficient in the future and utilize the available workforce better.
Digital security in Industry 4.0
The more connected devices, the more potential security gaps: The technological infrastructure of Industry 4.0 and IIoT places high demands on digital security. As long as production machines are separated from IT, it is relatively easy to shield them from the outside world. In the connected and constantly evolving world of Industry 4.0, on the other hand, there are many ways to gain access.
To shield against such scenarios, companies must therefore consider the security of their Industry 4.0 technologies from the get-go. On the one hand, this means always keeping systems up-to-date and applying security updates – on the other hand, a combination of software and hardware-based security solutions can ensure the protection of connected machines and communication nodes. Security often starts with the chips used in the devices. Ideally, these are already protected against cyber-attacks.
In addition to security, companies face a fundamental challenge in their Industry 4.0 projects: How do they connect their machines to the internet in the first place? Manufacturers today do offer new devices that already have IoT modules integrated – but very few factories are built from scratch. They operate with a historically grown production line that contains machines of various ages. Such equipment is expensive and cannot be replaced in one fell swoop. While we as consumers buy a new smartphone or PC every three years, industrial machines are often in use for 20 years or more.
To make these older devices fit for Digitalization 4.0, sensors, software, and an IoT-capable industrial control system must be retrofitted. The market offers retrofitting solutions for this purpose. A sensor monitors the speed of the lathe and transmits this data to a switching device: the IoT gateway. This in turn is connected with other company systems. A monitor on the lathe displays the transmitted data in real time. This tells you whether you need to pedal faster or slower to maintain the optimum speed.
The future of Industry 4.0
What is the future like in the eyes of manufacturing companies? The answers vary, but the opinion is clear: Industry 4.0 is clearly seen as an opportunity for their business. The implementation of an ecosystem for digitalization and new technologies already plays an important role not only in industrial applications, but also in areas such as climate, energy, and mobility. However, the manufacturing sector as the heart of the global economy, is currently feeling left behind: two-thirds of these companies consider themselves to be lagging or say that they are already out of the loop. The challenges lie not only in the financial resources needed, but also in the requirements for data protection and IT security.
