Call it Industry 4.0, the Connected Enterprise, or the Industrial Internet of Things, but this fourth manufacturing revolution is just getting started.
According to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), “smart manufacturing” is an umbrella term for “fully-integrated, collaborative manufacturing systems that respond in real time to meet changing demands and conditions in the factory, in the supply network, and in customer needs.” Already, this use of real-time data and technology to solve existing and future problems in manufacturing, while at the same time speeding up and streamlining business to create advantaged value, is being called the next Industrial Revolution. But what does “smart manufacturing” entail, precisely?
To find out more, Quality spoke with John Nesi, Vice President of Market Development at Rockwell Automation, and Bryce Barnes, Senior Manager of Cisco Systems’ Machine and Robot Segment globally under Cisco’s Internet of Things Manufacturing Solutions Group.