In “IDC FutureScape: Worldwide Manufacturing Predictions 2018,” the firm predicts that by 2020, 60 percent of the top manufacturers will rely on digital platforms that enhance their investments in ecosystems and experiences and support as much as 30 percent of their revenue.
This was a theme that resonated during our recent Industry 4.0 Salon Dinner in Detroit this month, which brought together more than 30 customers and partners from some of the world’s largest manufacturers. Conversations around a packed room centered on how they can help their organizations glean results from digitization efforts. Here are some of the highlights and takeaways from our evening:
- Manufacturers will look to digital platforms as the backbone for collaboration, bringing together their cloud-based ecosystems around employees, customers, suppliers, and partners. End-to-end operational integration depends on digital transformation.
- While this may be the vision, many of our guests face hurdles around outdated business models and legacy systems. Much of this is centered around data silos – manufacturers need to build strategies to find, extract data seamlessly between disparate systems and locations.
- Basically, data (whether it’s living off of PLCs or plant floors) underpins the entire digital manufacturing process. It’s at the core of all future initiatives around blockchain, IoT, machine learning, AI, and more.
- It’s not just their own data but in M&As, our customers are struggling with even more complex data silos and less visibility.
- Manufacturers are looking for solutions that not only cut down costs associated with manual operations and workflows, but add value to their businesses.
If you missed this last event, stay tuned because we’ll be hosting more in a city near you. A big thank you to all the customers and partners who attended and shared their own digital transformation stories:
Adient
ADVICS North America, Inc
AntWorks
Canon Solution America
Cpatrick Barnes and Associates
Cisco
Colliers International Group
EMM Enterprises
Filter Engineering
Foley Tubes
Galileo-Insights
General Motors
Interactive Energies
ITOCHU Techno-Solutions America, Inc.
Japan Business Society of Detroit
KDDI America
Martinrea International
Nabtesco Motion Control
ND Industries
Nitto Seiko Company Limited
Nutanix
Parsable
R&E Automated
Royal Alliance
Seco Tools
Sonoco Limited
HULFT specializes in helping both process and discrete manufacturers break down data siloes. No matter what system you’re on, we get it done without ripping or tearing out a thing. Watch our latest video to learn how.