Industry 4.0 for Laymen
                     Industry 4.0 for Laymen
Jenny Knight
Writes for smb-corner.com 
Small and Medium Business Corner & 
SMB Corner
In contemporary times, we are seeing a tremendous change in the way 
products are being manufactured, in various industries. This is with respect 
to the usage of several sophisticated technologies in different 
manufacturing processes. Market experts call this major change “Industry 
4.0”, to indicate that this technological surge in the manufacturing sector is 
the fourth Industrial Revolution.
Here, it is going to be worthwhile to succinctly speak about some salient 
aspects. These aspects shall give the laymen a basic idea as to what 
Industry 4.0 actually is.
 Industry 4.0 can be considered to be a logical continuation of the third 
revolution, which witnessed companies starting to make use of 
computers. The fourth revolution has brought further sophistication. 
The computers and other devices are now connected were 
communications between them are taking place in a simplified way.
 This is a striking feature of the fourth Industrial Revolution. 
Technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning, IoT 
(Internet of Things), and data analytics are being adopted by numerous 
manufacturing plants.
 As a result of the above technologies, there is a drastic improvement in 
both the quantity and quality of the output. Additionally, there is a 
marked decline in errors that can have serious cost implications and 
which lead to wastage of time, as well. Factories powered by these 
sophistications are enabled in identifying errors in the early stages only. 
There are then no hassles in initiating timely corrective measures.
 The technologies seen in Industry 4.0 are suitable to be used by all 
industries. Whatever might be the precise product that a plant 
manufactures, things like Machine Learning and AI are going to be of 
immense value. This is applicable even to sectors like mining and oil & 
gas.
 There should be no hesitation in stating that “digitization” can be viewed 
as a synonym for “Industry 4.0.” Increased reliance on digital 
technologies is making sure that manufacturing products customized as 
per user preferences have become much simpler than ever before.
 While emphasizing the innovations of the fourth Industrial Revolution, a 
specific mention has to be made of digital twin technology. This 
particular technology ensures that manufacturers are first able to see 
processes, installations, and applications, virtually. They will then get a 
perfect idea of how to go ahead with things, in real-life situations. The 
fact that this significantly minimizes the risk element necessitates no 
special mention.
 We have another technology that is positively impacting the 
manufacturing sector in Industry 4.0: 3D printing. With the presence of 
3D printing, which is an eco-friendly technology, the process of designing 
the product is now easier. Also, this printing plays a pivotal role in 
bringing down the overall costs of production for the plant.
Given the speed at which Industry 4.0 innovations are finding their way into 
many manufacturing entities, experts have made a prediction. Within the 
next three years, more than 60% of manufacturers are going to come under 
the fold of the fourth Industrial Revolution. The situation then will be 
conducive to the advent of Industry 5.0.
The subject “Industry 4.0” is an exhaustive one, and all its details cannot be 
covered in a small write-up. Yet, the article has sincerely attempted to 
include points that would suffice to provide basic knowledge to laymen.
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