Industry 4.0 is a term that was first coined at the Industrial Technology Fair held in 2011 in Hanover.
With the aim of launching a project to design and develop a smart factory associated with the Fourth Industrial Revolution—a vision of computerized manufacturing in which all processes are interconnected through the Internet of Things (IoT), now known as the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT).
Also known as the Fourth Industrial Revolution, it is changing the way businesses operate and, consequently, the environments in which they are forced to compete.
This new phase in the industry is focused on greater automation, connectivity, and globalization. We are seeing that the interconnection between different areas—such as Products, Processes, and Business Models—has permeated the industrial world, bringing with it the IoT and the world of Big Data and Analytics. These technological advances allow us to optimize manufacturing processes, their monitoring, and their integration with other processes and systems used on the factory floor.
Objectives of Industry 4.0
- This new revolution promises to combine advanced production and operations techniques with smart technologies that integrate with organizations, people, and assets.
- Organizations must identify the technologies that best meet their needs in order to invest in them. If companies do not understand the changes brought about by Industry 4.0, they run the risk of missing out on opportunities and, consequently, losing market share.
- Providing real-time access to data and business intelligence will transform the way they conduct their business.
Principles of Industry 4.0
Interoperability: The ability of elements within the factory—cyber-physical systems, robots, corporate information systems, smart products, and people—to communicate with one another, as well as with third-party systems.
Decentralization: The ability to design autonomous subprocesses within the factory using cyber-physical elements equipped with the capability to make decisions autonomously.
Real-time analytics: The ability to collect and analyze large amounts of data (Big Data) to monitor, control, and optimize processes.
Service-Oriented Approach: Always with the goal of passing on the new value generated to the customer in the form of new or improved services.
Modularity and scalability: Industry 4.0 is based on the premise of adapting to business needs, with the ability to scale and drive business growth in each specific case.
