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March 18, 2025

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Five Key Industry 4.0 Technologies
Manufacturing

Five Key Industry 4.0 Technologies

New Industry 4.0 technologies, spanning mobile computing to cloud computing, have undergone vast development in the last decade and are now ready to be used as commercially available, interconnected systems within manufacturing – . It holds the key to accessing real-time results and data that will catapult the industry into new levels of lean achievements.

The concept of Industry 4.0 however, is not a simple one. It envelops many technologies and is used in a variety of different contexts. There are five pieces that define Industry 4.0 at its core. Each piece is similar in nature but, when integrated together, create capability that has never before been possible. In an effort to understand Industry 4.0, the following five terms are explained as they contribute to the next industrial revolution:

1. Big Data

As per Forbes, Big Data is a collection of data from traditional and digital sources inside and outside your company that represents a source for ongoing discovery and analysis. Today data is collected everywhere, from systems and sensors to mobile devices. The challenge is that the industry is still in the process of developing methods to best interpret data. It’s the evolution of Industry 4.0 that will change the way organizations and solutions within those organizations work together; teams will be able to make better, smarter decisions.

2. Smart Factory

The concept of Smart Factory is the seamless connection of individual production steps, from planning stages to actuators in the field. In the near future, machinery and equipment will be able to improve processes through self-optimization; systems will autonomously adapt to the traffic profile and network environment. Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs), are an integral part of the Smart Factory, as their autonomous intelligence connects the factory together, allowing seamless operations. 

Leading by example is the Siemens Electronic Works facility in Amberg, Germany. Smart machines coordinate production and global distribution or a built-to-order process involving roughly 1.6 billion components. When the Smart Factory is achieved, it will represent a pivotal shift for Industry 4.0, as the revolution will begin to roll out across multiple verticals. Various markets spanning healthcare to consumer goods will adapt Industry 4.0 technologies initially modelled in the Smart Factory.

3. Cyber Physical Systems

Cyber physical systems are integrations of computation, networking and physical processes. Computers and networks monitor and control physical processes with feedback loops; the physical system reacts, the system uses software to interpret actions and tracks results. The notion centers on computers and software being embedded in devices where the first use is not computation; rather it is a loop of action and machine learning.

4. Internet of Things (IoT)

The internet of things is a simple term for a grandiose concept. IoT is the connection of all devices to the internet and each other. As Wired said, “it’s built on cloud computing and networks of data-gather sensors; it’s mobile, virtual, and instantaneous connection.” This interconnection will enable “smart factories” to take shape as equipment will use data to manufacture, move, report and learn at astounding rates, efficiently. Click here to learn how the industrial IoT drives productivity in factories.

5. Interoperability

Interoperability is in essence what happens when we bring the above elements together. It is the connection of cyber-physical systems, humans and smart factories communicating with each other through the IoT. In doing so, manufacturing partners can effectively share information, error-free. Consider that no single company can dictate all its partners use the same software or standards for how the information is represented. Interoperability enables error-free transmission and translation.

From 3D prints to self-driving vehicles, Industry 4.0 technologies are propelling the manufacturing industry with new means of efficiency, accuracy and reliability. The level of intelligence offered today is only the beginning for what is to come.

The 5 Factors of Industry 4.0 in Practice

Self-driving vehicles (SDVs) are a primary example of this technological evolution. Compared to their predecessors (autonomous guided vehicles), SDVs offer industrial centers increased flexibility and efficiency, higher throughput rates, and a faster return on investment. They move through plants with purpose, finding the most efficient route to their final destination by way of infrastructure-free navigation (no beacons, magnetic tape or cables). Onboard intelligence provides obstacle avoidance to ensure safe, collaborative work environments. Meanwhile, SDVs such as OTTO also offer intuitive light signals, much like vehicles on outdoor roads, to effectively communicate behaviors like turning, stopping, or parking. SDVs collect and share data from within the fleet, whether that fleet is used in one facility or many. Therefore, executives have visibility of real-time data and are able to make informed, educated decisions to positively impact KPIs and grow of their operation.

SDVs are only one example of how Industry 4.0 is going to transform the manufacturing sector. This industrial revolution will collect, use and share data so that industry can reach new heights in safety and efficiency, driving the sector closer to the ultimate goal of lights-out manufacturing.

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Preparing for Manufacturing’s Future with Industry 4.0
Manufacturing

Preparing for Manufacturing’s Future with Industry 4.0

Manufacturers must do things differently to win market share in today’s environment because it is not enough to maintain the status quo. To survive and thrive, manufacturers must focus on growth. One of the ways manufacturers can achieve growth is by leveraging Industry 4.0 technologies.

Industry 4.0 is all about doing things differently — introducing automation and data exchange in manufacturing technologies. It includes cyber-physical systems, the Internet of Things, and cloud computing.The goal is the "smart factory" with cyber-physical systems capable of autonomously exchanging information, triggering actions, and controlling each other independently. This facilitates fundamental improvements to the industrial processes involved in manufacturing, engineering, material usage, asset performance and management, and supply chain and lifecycle management.

 
 

While there is a great deal of discussion on the various technology enablers of Industry 4.0, I feel it’s more crucial to reframe the discussion around the business benefits. Industry 4.0 isn’t a technology initiative. It’s the future of manufacturing as we know it. It’s not just about improved performance and efficiency; investments into new manufacturing technologies enhance agility, flexibility, and speed-to-market when designing and launching new products and services.

Adopting an Industry 4.0 approach also provides the means to navigate change. Manufacturers are reinventing their business models to focus on value-added services, and/or entering new geographic markets or adjacent market segments. Today’s Industry 4.0-outfitted factories are empowered to drive productivity and keeps costs down while ensuring quality and consistency across manufacturing processes globally.

From a business perspective, Industry 4.0 supports four major tenets of operational execution:

  • Interoperability
  • Information Transparency
  • Actionable Insights
  • Automation

These tenets in turn, support several business imperatives. These include:

Scalability: Automation in the factory gives manufacturers the ability to transition personnel to more value-added activities, and provides the foundation to extend and expand product and service offerings. As they look to expand globally, automation maintains process consistency across locations.

This also allows manufacturers to focus on what they do best to find and refine their sweet spot. This moves manufacturers into a more advantageous position from taking on every job to taking on those jobs the organization can do well, while achieving the best profit margins.

Cloud technology is central to Industry 4.0. It allows manufacturers to scale operations by focusing more on core competencies versus IT operations. Many small to mid-market manufacturers have limited IT staffs; they must be very strategic with IT resources. The cloud is the great IT equalizer — giving small and mid-market enterprises access to leading software capabilities, while freeing them from having to monitor and manage infrastructure. The cloud also gives manufacturers the ability to spin up computing power, providing agility to help organizations “rise to the occasion” when needed.

 

Security and Redundancy: As digitization in the factory continues, security implications grow and a sophisticated and layered approach to security is critical. This is challenging for manufacturers who may not have the security resources in-house to adequately address this growing challenge. Again, leveraging a cloud-hosted software model can give manufacturers the ability to confidently charge forward in their Industry 4.0 initiatives.

 

Control and Visibility: In an increasingly complex and global manufacturing enterprise, a single digital thread across all operations is needed to support responsiveness, improve collaboration, reduce risk, and streamline compliance requirements. Visibility from order entry to inventory to finished product is required to inform customers, partners and other stakeholders as to status at any time.

Customer Experience: This visibility is key to provide the omni-channel order and fulfillment options that customers demand today. It’s also critical to support co-creation — the ability to collaborate with customers and suppliers. Making business processes transparent and/or open to engagement from customers and suppliers can support improved satisfaction, stronger relationships and loyalty.

Customization: Mass market manufacturing has given way to personalization and customization. This entails shorter production runs and the need to switch out lines more often. Manufacturers need to be able to configure and reconfigure the shop floor quickly and easily to avoid expensive machine and line downtime. Velocity is the new business currency.

Technologies such as augmented reality can help reduce lag time between design and production. 3-D printing is pivotal in this area. To date, the use case for rapid prototyping has proved to be a game changer, and other broader use cases are now coming into focus. These include 3-D printing for spares or replacement parts — providing the ability to improve responsiveness for customers at a time of need.

Additionally, manufacturers also benefit from 3-D printing of replacement parts — another game-changing value proposition when you consider all the benefits — reducing the acquisition time and cost of parts, especially for old or obsolete parts, andenabling manufacturers to implement speedy repairs that significantly reduce downtime while extending equipment shelf-life and return on investment.

Innovation: Crucially, manufacturers need to address whether the business systems they have in place are ready to support the journey toward Industry 4.0. Product Lifecycle Management (PLM), Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES), and Computer Aided Drafting/Computer Aided Manufacturing (CAD/CAM) all must be integrated to support the move toward increased digitization and customization.

So many organizations are spending many IT cycles on integration (a necessary evil), which takes away from their ability to focus on innovation (competitive advantage). This integration albatross is the subject of a study by Accenture, who reports a typical IT budget may allocate up to 90% to maintaining the current state and just 10% on innovating — a “technology debt” that is bankrupting competitive advantage.

 

The boundaries between production and management must disappear, and ERP, MES and other critical systems must form an integrated unit if businesses are to realize the growth opportunities presented by this new age of intelligent manufacturing. Evaluating the existing IT environment is the first step to understanding how ready — or unprepared — manufacturers are for Industry 4.0.

An accomplished marketing professional with broad experience in the manufacturing and supply chain sectors, Terri Hiskey is vice president of Product Marketing for Manufacturing at Epicor Software, a provider of ERP solutions for 20,000 customers worldwide.

 

By: Terri Hiskey

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