Industry 4.0 for Laymen

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Industry 4.0 for Laymen

Jenny Knight Writes for smb-corner.com Small and
Medium Business Corner SMB Corner
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• In contemporary times, we are seeing a tremendous
  change in the way products are being
  manufactured, in various industries. This is with
  respect to the usage of several sophisticated
  technologies in different manufacturing
  processes. Market experts call this major change
  Industry 4.0, to indicate that this
  technological surge in the manufacturing sector
  is the fourth Industrial Revolution.
• Here, it is going to be worthwhile to succinctly
  speak about some salient aspects. These aspects
  shall give the laymen a basic idea as to what
  Industry 4.0 actually is.
• Industry 4.0 can be considered to be a logical
  continuation of the third revolution, which
  witnessed companies starting to make use of
  computers. The fourth revolution has brought
  further sophistication. The computers and other
  devices are now connected were communications
  between them are taking place in a simplified way.

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• This is a striking feature of the fourth
  Industrial Revolution. Technologies such as
  Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning,
  IoT (Internet of Things), and data analytics are
  being adopted by numerous manufacturing plants.
• As a result of the above technologies, there is a
  drastic improvement in both the quantity and
  quality of the output. Additionally, there is a
  marked decline in errors that can have serious
  cost implications and which lead to wastage of
  time, as well. Factories powered by these
  sophistications are enabled in identifying errors
  in the early stages only. There are then no
  hassles in initiating timely corrective measures.
• The technologies seen in Industry 4.0 are
  suitable to be used by all industries. Whatever
  might be the precise product that a plant
  manufactures, things like Machine Learning and AI
  are going to be of immense value. This is
  applicable even to sectors like mining and oil
  gas.

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• There should be no hesitation in stating that
  digitization can be viewed as a synonym for
  Industry 4.0. Increased reliance on digital
  technologies is making sure that manufacturing
  products customized as per user preferences have
  become much simpler than ever before.
• While emphasizing the innovations of the fourth
  Industrial Revolution, a specific mention has to
  be made of digital twin technology. This
  particular technology ensures that manufacturers
  are first able to see processes, installations,
  and applications, virtually. They will then get a
  perfect idea of how to go ahead with things, in
  real-life situations. The fact that this
  significantly minimizes the risk element
  necessitates no special mention.
• We have another technology that is positively
  impacting the manufacturing sector in Industry
  4.0 3D printing. With the presence of 3D
  printing, which is an eco-friendly technology,
  the process of designing the product is now
  easier. Also, this printing plays a pivotal role
  in bringing down the overall costs of production
  for the plant.

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Given the speed at which Industry 4.0 innovations
are finding their way into many manufacturing
entities, experts have made a prediction. Within
the next three years, more than 60 of
manufacturers are going to come under the fold of
the fourth Industrial Revolution. The situation
then will be conducive to the advent of Industry
5.0. The subject Industry 4.0 is an exhaustive
one, and all its details cannot be covered in a
small write-up. Yet, the article has sincerely
attempted to include points that would suffice to
provide basic knowledge to laymen.

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