Industry 4.0 is in every Drupa announcement, but what is it?
There is one clear catchphrase for the upcoming Drupa, Industry 4.0. It is used by the German and Swiss companies in particular to signal that their equipment is networkable, able to feedback status, can communicate over the internet and so on. For the German government, which has promoted the idea of Industry 4.0, this is no less than the fourth industrial revolution. The British government, it might seem, is happy to have stopped with the first industrial revolution.
That aside, phrases such as a printing press becomes a cyber physical system, that predictive maintenance, benchmarking and the delivery of services is possible thanks to the connectivity that is at the heart of Industry 4.0, will be everywhere around the halls of the Dusseldorf Messe. The ideas behind Industry 4.0 have given manufacturers a set of guidelines and targets to aim for in driving for automation that far exceed the aims of JDF, OEE, lean management and the Internet of Things. Ultimately the Smart Factory will have machines capable of making decentralised decisions based on the changing circumstances, which is what well trained and skilled people have always done.
Those developing the framework of Industry 4.0 announced this only in 2013. Even then the objective was clear: mass customisation becomes possible if decisions are taken at the point of need and flow backwards; production can be spread across different plants and countries even. These have been familiar discussion points ever since digital printing arrived 25 years ago, without any conclusion so far. Industry 4.0 may change that. There will be no stands where you can buy Industry 4.0 at Drupa, but it could be the most important development at the show.
There is an industrial revolution coming
Industry 4.0 is in every Drupa announcement, but what is it?
There is one clear catchphrase for the upcoming Drupa, Industry 4.0. It is used by the German and Swiss companies in particular to signal that their equipment is networkable, able to feedback status, can communicate over the internet and so on. For the German government, which has promoted the idea of Industry 4.0, this is no less than the fourth industrial revolution. The British government, it might seem, is happy to have stopped with the first industrial revolution.
That aside, phrases such as a printing press becomes a cyber physical system, that predictive maintenance, benchmarking and the delivery of services is possible thanks to the connectivity that is at the heart of Industry 4.0, will be everywhere around the halls of the Dusseldorf Messe. The ideas behind Industry 4.0 have given manufacturers a set of guidelines and targets to aim for in driving for automation that far exceed the aims of JDF, OEE, lean management and the Internet of Things. Ultimately the Smart Factory will have machines capable of making decentralised decisions based on the changing circumstances, which is what well trained and skilled people have always done.
Those developing the framework of Industry 4.0 announced this only in 2013. Even then the objective was clear: mass customisation becomes possible if decisions are taken at the point of need and flow backwards; production can be spread across different plants and countries even. These have been familiar discussion points ever since digital printing arrived 25 years ago, without any conclusion so far. Industry 4.0 may change that. There will be no stands where you can buy Industry 4.0 at Drupa, but it could be the most important development at the show.
Explore more...