Industry 4.0 & Supply Chain
Today, Industry 4.0 functions as a kind of roadmap for high-tech digitization in industry. It is based on a digital convergence of operations, in which processes and data can be integrated across multiple supply chains and product life cycles. Since Industry 4.0 builds on existing revolutionary technologies, it requires lean setups as a starting point and lean, well-structured processes from there.
The impact of this new paradigm on supply chain management is already clearly visible. When supply chain managers look to the future, they should keep the four key concepts of Industry 4.0 in mind:
Information transparency: Systems exchange data seamlessly and instantly, ensuring that all areas work together using real-time information. Any new technology a company deploys should provide this transparency.
Interoperability: People, machines, sensors, and devices connect and communicate with each other. Compatibility requirements for software, machines, and other devices must be considered.
Decentralised decision making: Today’s systems can make simple decisions independently. This has the potential to increase efficiency by reducing the time and resources required for centralized monitoring.
Technical support: : Systems can help people make decisions and solve problems. This interdependence of systems and people is a key feature of Industry 4.0.
Integration of analytics capabilities
The manufacturing world, to say nothing of analytics systems, are evolving rapidly: Industry 4.0 uses advanced analytics and Big Data to ensure end-to-end (E2E) visibility. Up-to-date data is available to support real-time decisions and increase visibility across the entire supply chain, both inside and outside individual companies.
Visibility for all stakeholders
Supply chain leaders have long striven for more transparency, and Industry 4.0 delivers just that. All stakeholder groups have access to real-time data for their specific tasks. In addition, aggregation schemes allow companies to be managed from a single machine view to global corporate management. This E2E view provides a snapshot across organizations throughout the entire supply chain, from raw material suppliers to end users.
ERP interfaces
Innovative supply chain leaders look beyond the "best of breed" approach that characterizes modern ERP. Instead, they use ERPs that foster strategic collaboration between business and IT leaders and put companies on the road to success in the Industry 4.0 environment. Data systems that can communicate beyond the boundaries of the enterprise offer unprecedented integration opportunities, undoubtedly leading to a much more flexible supply chain.
Internet of Things adoption
Another aspect of this integration is the addition of networked machines and sensors along the entire supply chain. The Internet of Things (IoT) refers to computer technology embedded in devices that can communicate with other devices and people via the Internet. The Industry 4.0 supply chain makes full use of IoT for optimized, agile operations.
Increased use of cloud solutions
Lived Industry 4.0 means data generation at its best. Real-time knowledge is constantly produced for immediate access and E2E visibility. loud solutions are best suited for these requirements. As cloud technology continues to improve, it is increasingly being used in companies for data management. Coupled with seemingly endless storage capacity and ever shorter response times, the cloud offers the agility necessary to power the Fourth Industrial Revolution.