Digital technologies are driving change and innovation in all sectors and in all areas. This is particularly true for the manufacturing industry, including the automotive and mechanical and plant engineering sectors. The globalization of markets and the pressure to bring new products onto the market in ever shorter cycles is increasingly increasing the pressure on the manufacturing industry. This is because new competitors are entering the market and drastically shifting market shares.
Companies need to rethink and modernize their business models and processes in order to successfully master this changed situation and maintain their competitiveness. In concrete terms, this means that there is no way around digitalization. Companies need to expand their digital capabilities in order to position themselves for the future. At the same time, manufacturing companies need to focus on their customers and their needs.
Digitalization helps to build lasting relationships with customers and achieve long-term success.
The focus here is on intelligent, digital, data-based products and services that offer added value and contribute to value creation. It is also about being better positioned digitally through optimized processes.
Whitepaper on the topic
- Status quo – How digitized is the manufacturing industry?
- The path to successful digitalization in manufacturing
Webinar on the topic
- How the market is currently positioned.
- Challenges especially in manufacturing.
- How flexible tools can achieve better results.
Using data successfully
However, the reality is quite different. In many companies in the manufacturing industry, processes run too slowly. There is a lack of links between customer and production data. There is insufficient transparency across sales channels and the supply chain.
The solution is the Internet of Things (IoT) to network data and systems, optimize processes and customer service and build sustainable customer relationships with the help of data-based services.
The use of IoT in industrial production is summarized under the keyword Industry 4.0. This allows systems to be monitored and controlled remotely from a central location, so that production is closely networked with the latest information and communication technology. Thanks to the intelligent collection of production data, companies can react to changing conditions in real time, optimize their production accordingly and control it in a targeted manner.
Increased efficiency through innovative technology
The Internet of Things therefore has the potential to further improve established structures and processes within the company and, thanks to the flow of data and information, to drive forward the further development of the company’s own portfolio of solutions and services. However, this can only be achieved with the help of appropriate applications that enable communication between the hardware components used and the profitable processing of the collected data.
This is where the advantages of uncomplicated application creation through low code come into play. The innovative technology makes it possible to react quickly to newly acquired knowledge. The IoT applications can thus be easily adapted to your own needs or created from scratch. In addition, various scenarios can be tested until the developed IoT application meets the specified requirements.
With low-code platforms, companies can adapt quickly and efficiently to changing circumstances through in-house development, as they enable the creation of applications without programming knowledge. IT specialists are relieved as the basis for the applications is already created in the specialist departments. They only have to deal with the more complex issues where, for example, individual programming may be necessary and contribute their skills efficiently.
However, the potential time savings and careful use of resources are not the only reasons for using modern low-code platforms when implementing IoT applications. IoT structures consist of a network of different endpoints, which in manufacturing companies are represented in production on the one hand and in systems at the backend level on the other. The traditional programming of corresponding IoT applications therefore requires precise knowledge of all the nodes in the system. This challenge can also be made easier by using low-code technology. Apps created with low-code can be easily integrated into existing IT infrastructures. Scalable architectures make it easier to adapt the application to the requirements of IT governance. This ensures that the created application functions smoothly in an IoT-based system landscape. In addition, the IT department always retains control over all applications and data streams and provides support with defined framework parameters during application creation.
