Dare, redefine and transform
A vision of Industry 4.0
Since its beginning, the industry, regardless of the sector it belongs to, has been part of major changes in life as we know it, forging a path of constant evolution, which has allowed it to experience, test and put into practice new mechanisms that helped consolidate its global presence. Mechanization, mass production and automation played a leading role in the first three Industrial Revolutions, which shows that redefining existing paradigms will always be welcomed to transcend the present and build a better future.
With the advent of emerging technologies, capable of sharing and generating a flow of information in a remote way between human beings and existing automaton resources, the Fourth Industrial Revolution formally made its first appearance at the 2016 edition of the World Economic Forum. However, how did we get to this point?
The idea of the proliferation of “Industry 4.0” is based on the creation of an “Intelligent Factory”, characterized by the interconnection of machines and systems at the production site itself, as well as by exchange of information with the outside world (economic flows, market competition levels and new consumer profiles, who make decisions and create buying habits as part of a global supply system). However, the disruptive value of this new era does not impact only the technological elements that redefine the factory, but also influences a new level of organization and control of the product development network, supply chain, production, delivery and service. It aims to provide individualized experiences that are cataloged by their focus on consumers, by creating a timely follow-up system, as well as by taking into account the context that surrounds them, both at the company and at the client’s place, eventually leaving behind “(company to client) value extraction” and investing in an approach based on “mutual exchange”.
Once the essence of this Revolution is understood, we must proceed to generally apprehend a holistic vision that we, at everis, relate to four guiding principles:
Paradigms. A set of resources, either tangible or intangible, that allow the company to experience and redefine the way its current processes or methods are performed. These tools provide us with the opportunity to explore new and even better operational alternatives. Some examples include Big Data, Cybersecurity, Cloud, Internet of Things, among others.
Fields of application. Once the ideal operational resources have been identified, the company should analyze where they are needed. This is not about acquiring and implementing them indiscriminately, we need to evaluate, based on the goals of that era, which areas are best suited to redefine their processes.
The new technological paradigms and their application in areas identified by clients result in a series of qualitative and quantitative benefits and in a clearly defined financial impact (business case).
Qualitative benefits. They result from the way we face corporate challenges, based on how we apply our paradigms to operate changes to company areas that require them.
· Agility
· Anticipation
· Autonomy
· Integration
· Accuracy
· Simplification
Financial impacts. Perceived in the company’s financial plan in the form of increased profits, cost reductions and existing cash flow.
Industry 4.0 promotes the integration of machines, installations, factories and networks of the Industrial Revolution by means of digital information and communication technologies. However, merely digitizing what already exists won’t do. Companies need to be innovative and able to implement new ways of creating services and/or products to attract the interest of customers and, at the same time, experiment with new ideas to promote the presence of a research and development area. In this new era, we are in charge of reacting and meeting the needs of these advantages. At the same time, we need to clearly understand the essence of changes so that we may develop, within our scope, increasingly solid strategies.
