Analytics header

Wednesday, December 6, 2017

Smart Manufacturing / Industry 4.0 - 20 years in the making.

Hello everybody, I am back after a bit of an extended hiatus. I am finding my way back to blogging starting with some reflection on the past and view into the future.

In the late 1990s I was part of a international research effort that lay the groundwork for what we know of today as Industry 4.0 or Smart Manufacturing. I specifically was interested in the architecture of what is now known as IIoT. In 2000 I wrote an article in the Journal of Manufacturing Systems about these new concepts and predicted that it would take 15 years to become mainstream. I guess I was young and optimistic, it has already been close to 18 years and although its still not mainstream it has started to move in that direction.

At that time the Internet was at its infancy and we could only dream of what is now possible with today’s technology. it was called many different thing such as multi-agent systems, Holonic Manufacturing Systems, Adaptive Manufacturing, and a few other such concepts. It was also called Intelligent Manufacturing, there was even an international consortium named that (and it still exists www.ims.org!). It is also one of the reasons behind the name of this blog. The joke was that what we did up to then was not intelligent :-) However the underlying assumption was that it will be a paradigm shift, a new way of thinking and a new way of operating that is brought about with technological advances.


Now, in the last many years I have been deeply immersed in the pharmaceutical industry and I have come to understand how immature this industry is from a manufacturing operations and technology perspective. Yes biologic manufacturing is novel, complex and groundbreaking however looking at the operations of a pharma plant with paper based systems, traditional automaton and maybe some MES it is nowhere close to the likes of Automotive, Aerospace and even CPG. Yes, this may be a broad and general statement but there is truth to it! Risk averseness driven by regulatory requirements is clearly one of the reasons and probably also why there is little innovation in the manufacturing operations space here, however that should not be an excuse.

So where am I going with this? I think that the pharma industry is poised to take a generational leap and may be able to skip the current or traditional manufacturing operations paradigms and go directly to Smart Manufacturing - bold! it is going to take more than putting a smart sensor on some equipment or sending some data to the cloud for analytics, but its a start. Most of all it is going to take leadership and a vision. There are a few people out there that I know will be able to do this - you know who you are. I am also ready for the challenge - It is a paradigm shift, we must think differently and operate differently.

22 comments:

Julie Fraser said...

Great to have your voice back on-line, Gilad! I've been around a long time too, and do see Industry 4.0 as the culmination of visions from the past 20 or even 30 years. For regulated biopharma manufacturers, I think you're right that they may be in position to transform quickly... If they can shift the mindset and leadership. Looking forward to those leaders telling their stories as they implement projects and initiatives!

Gilad Langer said...

Hi Julie, great to see you are following my blog, and thanks for the heads-up :-)

Julia444444 said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Julia444444 said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Julia444444 said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
pridesys said...

Nice post,thanks for giving this post this is very useful. Pridesys ERP the name you can trust. Pridesys ERP supports integration across all aspects of the Manufacturing Process.
This is the ERP solution will ensure you the proper control, integration and synchronization of all aspects of Manufacturing Process, which are followed and suitable for Bangladesh. Short and log production, both can adopt the system properly.for more info visit: Pridesys IT Ltd

velraj said...

Thank you so much for all wonderful information about Technology. I loved your work.
SAS Training in Chennai
SAS Course in Chennai
sas course fees in chennai
clinical sas training in chennai
clinical sas training
Placement Training in Chennai
soft skills training in chennai
SAS Training in Chennai

Anonymous said...

I bookmarked this blog site, really good information
Thank you for posting. Have a look here also

ERP Software in Saudi Arabia | Cloud Based ERP Software in Saudi Arabia
erp in Saudi Arabia | Cloud ERP Software in Saudi Arabia

Demand Generation Agency said...

Very useful article. This is full of information I can't wait to dig deep and start utilizing the useful resource given by you. This is probably the best blog I came across today. I Just want to add about Opgen Media, it is a service-oriented Demand Generation Agency that helps you with the modernization of marketing operations as a strategic partner & provide hands-on execution.

Anonymous said...

Manufacture ERP, demand and supply are three major activities of any manufacturing industry. ... Whether it is planning, developing, sales forecasting or any other important business operation for a manufacturing business, ERP software assists in everything.

Manufacturing ERP
Agaram infotech

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

Manufacturing ERP delivers manufacturing-specific functionalities that streamline and automate core business and manufacturing processes.

Manufacturing ERP
Agaram infotech

Aparna said...

Really immeasurable information for us... Thank you for presenting such wonderful details.
Pega Training in Chennai
Pega Training
Oracle Training in Chennai
Spark Training in Chennai
Graphic Design Courses in Chennai
Oracle DBA Training in Chennai
Advanced Excel Training in Chennai
Embedded System Course Chennai
Tableau Training in Chennai
Linux Training in Chennai
Soft Skills Training in Chennai

sharan said...

Thank you for taking time to provide us some of the useful and exclusive information with us.
Microsoft Windows Azure Training | Online Course | Certification in chennai | Microsoft Windows Azure Training | Online Course | Certification in bangalore | Microsoft Windows Azure Training | Online Course | Certification in hyderabad | Microsoft Windows Azure Training | Online Course | Certification in pune

Laraib said...

PVC pipes are therefore free from bio-film contamination that can be a breeding ground for bacteria. By helping provide clean water, PVC pipes are beneficial to public health. pvc pipes manufacturers in Assam

Reshma said...

Awesome blog. Thanks for sharing such a worthy information....
Full stack developer course in bangalore
Full stack developer course in pune
Full stack developer course in Gurgaon
Full stack developer course in Hyderabad
Full stack developer course in Delhi

David Fincher said...

This post is so interactive and informative.keep update more information...
Hadoop Training in Anna Nagar
Big data training in chennai

asmaferoz said...

Thanks for sharing this blog. It was so informative.
Best way to introduce yourself in an interview
How to introduce myself in a job interview

Pavithra Devi said...

Mindblowing blog very useful thanks
dot net training in OMR
Dot net training in Chennai


Samia Beel said...

Microsoft Excel 2007 now handles file name that are not supported in the previous edition of Word Processing software. You ought to download because you've been MS Office 2007 Download With Crack

The Blogger Worlds2 said...

Free download HandBrake 1.5.1 full version standalone offline installer for Windows PC,. HandBrake Overview. HandBrake is an effective and highly Handbrake Free Download

Anonymous said...

The board and management staff has a 카지노사이트 written policy of paying, over time, 50% of its earnings as dividend. While I do not begrudge collecting dividend, I'd quite have the company reinvest such earnings while it's in a position to} generate such wholesome returns. Interestingly, such a dividend policy seems to be more common across many of the Swedish companies that truly have} evaluated recently.