(English) Industry 4.0: A Key Enabler Of Resilient Supply Chains

Obviously smart technologies are driving this revolution and transforming manufacturing back into an economic powerhouse. Enterprises are starting to get the importance of digital transformation, and thinking ways to improve their business. Precisely, manufacturing companies begin aggressively looking at Industry 4.0 to transform the value chain, which typically starts with smart manufacturing and can reach as far as creating new business models.

At SAP, Digital Supply Chain has been in discussions with customers, partners and analysts trying to absorb the rapid pace of change and the adjustments that need to be made.

What exactly do supply chains of the future need to look like? The answer we got was that companies need to build resilient and sustainable supply chains. To achieve this, four key points are needed.

1.Become more agile to sense, predict, and respond to disruptions

2.Increase productivity through the digitalization of industrial companies (Industry 4.0)

3.Improve connectivity with business partners to enable next-level collaboration

4.Run sustainable business practices

Industry 4.0 now helps you move digitalization to a company-wide, competitive business strategy combining manufacturing automationwith enterprise business execution. This includes intelligent product engineering, managing intelligent factories, and assets leveraging advanced logistics coupled with people empowerment.

We combine SAP solutions for design, manufacture, delivery, and operation in one holistic offering, bringing enterprise business data together with data derived from machines, sensors, and devices facilitating the ability to automate processes with embedded artificial intelligence and increase visibility and efficiency.

But how can we go further to Industry 4.0?

It is well known we are only in the beginning of the adoption of Industry 4.0 and IIoT, and many companies are running pilots and proof of concepts. It starts with planning, and the ability to sense demand changes and trigger fast, flexible execution on shop floor, logistics and asset management.

Companies need to consider their engineering, manufacturing and planning systems and integrating them – this is horizontal integration. For vertical integration, it’s tying together the other components – hardware, automation equipment and data lakes – and this requires standards and a common reference architecture to make it easier and faster to connect the various components.

With the upgraded Industry 4.Now, SAP is bringing significant innovation to the entire supply chain, from design to operations and maintenance, to deliver greater intelligence, automation and responsiveness.

This article is orginated from SAP BRANDVOICE / By Franz Hero, SAP