What is Intelligent and Smart manufacturing?

Smart Manufacturing is the integration of modern industry 4.0 technologies in the traditional manufacturing process. The main aim is to integrate automation in the working, operations, data analytics, real-time data of manufacturing activities, equipment maintenance, and energy consumed.

It is the revolution in the manufacturing sector and in the US it is termed “Smart Manufacturing”, in Europe it is termed “Industry 4.0”, in China it is termed “Made in China 2025” and in Japan, it is termed as “Industry 4.1 J”.

In normal traditional manufacturing, all the things from logistics inside the factory, decision making by managers, manufacturing of a product by the machine operator, equipment repair status/requirement are not based on data but based on management's experience and the real-time situation around the departments.

In Smart Manufacturing, each and everything is connected digitally and can be tracked with complete transparency and visibility. All the decisions by different stakeholders/managers can be taken with the help of real-time data and reports.

Some of the modern technologies that play a major role in smart manufacturing are Cloud Computing, Blockchain, IoT (Internet of Things), Artificial Intelligence, Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality, Additive Manufacturing, etc.

There are many challenges such as privacy, legal compliances, awareness among managers or company owners, digitalization, infrastructure, and less research are associated with the revolution but all the researchers from top companies, countries, and institutions are working on it.

Some of the advantages of Smart Manufacturing are:

1. Increases trust among stakeholders.

2. Availability of real-time data of all the systems, processes, operators.

3. Reduces uncertainties involved in equipment maintenance.

4. Improves efficiency and productivity of 3P (People, Product, and Process)

5. Reduces supply chain efforts and manual work with the help of automation.

6. Improves the decision-making process with the help of data analytics.

Integrating digitalization in the traditional manufacturing process and planning away toward a smart factory not only helps in the internal operations but also smoothens and plans toward a digital supply chain.

In the next smart manufacturing blog, we will learn about different technology-based use cases and applications in factories or manufacturing plants.

Industry 4.0 Insights aims to spread knowledge in Smart Manufacturing, Supply Chain Management, and Industry 4.0 Revolution through a series of structured blogs, various events, and a curated list of internship opportunities from top companies.

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Read our 1st Blog - What is Industry 4.0?

Read our 2nd Blog - What is Supply Chain Management and it's importance?

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Written by - Dhruman Gohil