Digital Transformation Strategy for Manufacturing

It’s officially an era in which digital data, connectivity, and processing intersect every aspect of manufacturing. Organizational structure, training, revenue models – it’s all impacted.

Are you ready to get serious about getting digital?

Digital Transformation Strategy for Manufacturing

We found a long, useful and detailed article on the website of Seebo, an AI company. Here are the steps they outline for a digital transformation strategy:

• Create an Industry 4.0 road map. Consider the current status of the company with regards to digitization, and then set targets for a 5-year period. Goals with the most significant ROI should take top priority, while measures should be taken to get leadership on board.
• Decide upon projects that establish POC (proof of concept). This somewhat experimental phase should use a variety of pilot projects to establish the performance of cross-functional teams, and gauge how agile the process is.
• Define target functionality. Based on knowledge gained from Step 2., decide which Industry 4.0 capabilities will drive the most value for the company. At this stage, you should be better informed about the abilities of your teams to implement the new technology, and whether additional recruiting is necessary.
• Learn to leverage data analytics. Progressing to Industry 4.0 means nothing without being able to analyze the collected data. This analysis should be immediately fed into the decision making process.
• Adopt digital transformation as a company. Implementing Industry 4.0 is more than a temporary adjustment phase. To reap the benefits, adoption of this new approach should be company-wide, led from the top with C-suite and financial stakeholders setting the tone.
• Develop as an integral part of your ecosystem. As you use IoT (the Internet of Things) to create better solutions for your customers, keep a broad vision of your position within your business ecosystem. Share knowledge with partners and suppliers and explore potential avenues for further collaboration to further the quality and scope of your products and services.

Yes, it’s a big investment in time and effort. And it has real opportunities for significant payoffs. According to The Manufacturer, these are five advantages of digital technologies:

• Work more efficiently through automation and predictive analytics
• Innovate more easily by linking planning and development
• Share specialist knowledge via centralized storage and collaborative design
• Learn on the job, with built-in system intelligence
• Make customers and employees happier with improved quality and compliance

Disruption Teaches

Disruption has become the norm. AI (artificial intelligence), Big Data, robotics, IoT: These all represent enormous changes from how manufacturing existed a generation ago.

We’ve seen the writing on the wall, and we’ve been integrating these changes.

Suddenly, COVID-19 is the biggest disruptor most of us have witnessed in our lifetimes, and we can no longer afford to drag our feet.