The IT Systems magazine, a renowned journal mapping the field of information technologies, published an article from Jan Slajer of Dynamic Future in their September issue. The text talks about Industry 4.0, the technologies on which this phenomenon stands and primarily, the need to accept a fundamental change in the way people think and approach business and work.

Industrial revolutions are certain points in industry development when a completely fundamental change of the way products are manufactured is taking place. Currently, we’re talking about four industrial revolutions and right now, we are in the middle of the last one, also labeled as Industry 4.0.

The first one of them was launched by introducing the commercially viable steam engine and the emergence of the textile industry. The second one is connected with electrification and mass production. The third one began with the emergence of computers after World War II. And the fourth industrial revolution is continuing in what has started during the previous time. The current computer systems are being brought to perfection with the implementation of automation, smart autonomous systems, machine learning and process digitization. These technologies integrate the physical and virtual world in completely new ways and work procedures and bring absolutely unprecedented options not only in the industry, but in almost all areas of life.

A new level of IT utilization

Industry 4.0 moves the use of computers to a whole new level. When computers were first introduced within the third industrial revolution, it was a completely new technology that changed the work system of that time. Whereas Industry 4.0 “only” unlocks a new level of options. Computers are connected to networks and can communicate with each other without the need for human intervention. The combination of the virtual and physical worlds and Internet of Things gave rise to Industry 4.0 and moved smart factories from a sci-fi reality into everyday life.

With involvement of intelligent machines that are becoming smarter and smarter, provided they get access to data, effectiveness and productivity of factories is growing, while reducing waste and the overall impacts on the environment. Connection of individual devices and data sharing is the driving force of Industry 4.0.

Where are the technologies of Industry 4.0. being implemented already?

A lot of enterprises still don’t believe in the benefit of Industry 4.0 or have trouble finding a way of applying these technologies. However, many others are already implementing the changes and preparing for the future where smart devices streamline and optimize their business. Let’s introduce the most common examples of Industry 4.0. technologies’ application.

Optimization of logistics and supply chains

It is possible to react to unforeseen circumstances and new requirements, thanks to the supply chain interconnection through a sensor system, as well as the whole digitization into one functional system. If there’s, for example, a delay in shipment due to bad weather, the interconnected system that is monitoring the entire distribution chain is able to react and change the parameters of the related processes in a way that minimizes the negative impacts.

Robotization

Robots are being applied more and more in small and medium enterprises as well. They find their place, for example, in warehouses where they store items or prepare them for dispatch or cooperate with human employees. They can also get to places where employees have problems and take over hard, dangerous or unpleasant work. Greater effectiveness, lower costs and error reduction belong to their advantages as well.

Robots are extensively used already. However, within Industry 4.0, the utilization of robots should be much more massive. The idea is to create smart factories where robots take over all physical work for production of goods and will be able to work almost with no need for human intervention. Even here, the connection of the physical world with computer and communication systems is going to be applied through digitalization.

Identification of problems and opportunities

Using connectivity, interconnected systems are able to process huge sets of data from the field of maintenance, performance, consumption and other parameters. Furthermore, they can analyze these data and therefore, get an overall picture in a time horizon that would be unreal for a human. Thanks to that, Industry 4.0 offers an option to quickly and effectively optimize all processes.

Simulation techniques

Dynamic simulation is not new either. Goods and processes can be virtually modeled and tested. Therefore, savings of time, material, effort, but also money, are tremendous. Large-scale systems, processes and project planning won’t do well without simulation and testing on digital twins.

The utilization of digital twins is currently on the rise. Manufacturing, logistics or trading companies used to have a simulation model for verification or setting specific situations, improving specific production sectors, verification of sales increase or customer requirements. That’s currently not enough. Because markets are constantly changing and developing, customer requirements, company owners’ wishes and competition development are changing as well. That’s the reason why the companies’ requirements for predictive simulation utilization have changed drastically. It’s not only about a one-time inspection, setting or optimization of a process anymore, but rather creation of a complex digital twin. Responsible managers want to have a tool they can use to verify the impact of a change in customer requirements, addition of new products to the production portfolio or adjustment of the technological production procedure at their disposal. That’s offered by a digital twin – a transformation of manufacturing, logistic, warehousing or trading processes into simulation models.

Many of our businesses are already successfully using this technology, catching up with their competition from more advanced countries. Czech and Slovakian companies are getting on the same level as their competition abroad, because there, digital twins have been used for many years. And because we are directly taking part in creating digital twins in the UK or USA, we know that they are used in the automotive industry (Bentley Motors, Jaguar Land Rover), aviation industry (Safran) or oil & gas industry (Shell). These companies use digital twins for correct setting of new processes (Jaguar Land Rover), effective moving of drilling rigs with regard to weather and distance (Shell), changing production technologies (Safran) or verification of the impact of increase in production on the production line (Bentley Motors).

Internet of Things and cloud services

Internet of Things belongs to key components of Industry 4.0 and is characterized by devices connected through the internet. The Internet of Things enables communication in real time, initialization of both individual physical devices and entire systems, and stands behind the emergence of all smart technologies. This technology is not a domain of internal business operation only. Quite the contrary. Thanks to cloud services, all devices and processes can be managed and optimized at any time and from any place, with the possibility of being used by several users at the same time. Therefore, even small enterprises can have access to technological means which they would not be able to afford by themselves.

„The main problem of the industrial revolution, that we’re living in, is in us. We are waiting for a new steam engine, robot, space technology. But we have that. The revolution must take place in us, in the way we think and approach towards technologies and information support. If one employee calls another to tell her, she entered some information necessary for the other’s work, then I think that no robot in production, as an example of Industry 4.0, will succeed. Industry 4.0 must stand on solid personal, technological and information foundations,” states Petr Jaluvka, executive of DYNAMIC FUTURE Ltd.

In the middle of the stream

Industry 4.0 is still developing and we are going to have a complete picture of how it will have turned out in the end after several decades. However, we can say now that the companies implementing modern technologies and digitizing their enterprises, make use of the potential that Industry 4.0 is offering. Production in the near future will have to react to the change of conditions and requirements more flexibly. That will require changing the ways of production, delivery and also the entire management and process settings. In the conditions of current business systems, most of these changes are unreal, so enterprises are going to have to include overall modernization and digitization among their priorities.

And that’s what’s Industry 4.0 about – change of thinking, processes and business models. For full utilization of the Industry 4.0 technologies, it is necessary to get out of the comfort zone of established procedures and accept the change of thinking and overall approach towards business processes. We already have top notch technologies at our disposal. You just need to select the most suitable ones and then make use of their benefit for your business.