Manufacturers are not yet using the basic principles of Industry 4.0 to get closer to customers, suppliers and distributors. Mutual operability, transparency and decentralisation are not high on the agenda, according to international research by Oracle.
The survey, among 700 managers of manufacturing companies worldwide, found that a majority of manufacturers did invest in Industry 4.0 programmes. Yet only 17 per cent have adjusted their business model accordingly.
Moreover, it appears that only a third of manufacturers have deployed Industry 4.0 technologies to eliminate data silos across the entire value chain, while 40 per cent have an open exchange of data with suppliers and distributors. For decision-making processes, less than half have integrated customer data and supplier and distributor data.
First results promising
Producers who integrated a digital approach internally are reaping the benefits. 82 per cent of those surveyed who integrated data internally benefited.
"It's good to see manufacturers reaping the benefits of Industry 4.0″, explains Peter Fleischmann, Senior Sales Director Finance & Supply Chain at Oracle, "Yet there is still a long way to go before investments have their long-awaited impact of transformation. Eliminating internal silos is a good start, but that digital approach needs to extend further, outside the organisation and through the entire value chain. Using good, interconnected cloud systems is the easiest way for manufacturers to securely integrate data from suppliers and distributors, and to better leverage customer and sensor data to manage the impact of disruptive forces."
Similar to Chinese manufacturers
One positive finding in the survey for European manufacturers is that their Industry 4.0 results are similar to those of their Chinese counterparts. Only 34 per cent of Chinese producers have integrated end-user and customer data into the decision-making process - which is below the international average of 43 per cent. However, more than half of Chinese manufacturers (53 per cent) admit that this is an area where improvement is needed - compared to 43 per cent globally.
Removing data silos
As for the next steps towards Industry 4.0, manufacturers give work on customer centricity the highest priority to tackle over the next three years. Half of them will focus on removing data silos and 47 per cent say they need to ensure more open data exchange with suppliers and distributors.
