Industry 4.0, Sustainable Manufacturing, and Circular Economy: Key Tech Trends to Watch

This article is a continuation from our original article, Part 1: Technology trends to keep an eye on–Connectivity, and follow-up article, Part 2: Technology trends to keep an eye on.

New generations of robots and Industry 4.0

A decade ago, the German government created an initiative called Industrie 4.0, the Fourth Industrial Revolution. As a result, new industrial technologies and digital transformation are arriving worldwide, especially in Asia and Europe.

Fueled by AI, new generations of robots are arriving at the workplace. The new systems, from factory automation to autonomous vehicles and drones, are entirely mobile, running on powerful wireless networks. Cloud providers AWS, Google Cloud, and Microsoft Azure have been collaborating with robotics developers on this. This space is now defined as robotics-as-a-service teamed with software-as-a-service.

Also, the Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated the demand for robots to handle more industrial tasks. Technologies such as Augmented Reality, paired with 5G networks, allow engineers to service machines remotely, and many previously human performed tasks are now done autonomously or remotely controlled.

Robots are also moving out of the warehouse and factory, into the larger world, helped by AI and the arrival of 5G networks. Companies will face challenges around talent, questions of human-computer interaction, and the world as a testbed.

Industry 4.0 has also fueled the rise of locally manufactured, 3D printed products. The advances in materials and lower cost of 3D printers make it possible to produce complex parts locally, without the need for expensive molds and waiting for international delivery.

Some companies are now producing metal parts and basic electronics in 3D printers, allowing them to prototype a new product quickly.

According to HP, production runs of less than 100,000 units of the same part can be 3D printed locally without incurring additional costs, saving time, and allowing for quick changes. It is also a much more sustainable way to manufacture products as 3D printers produce only a fraction of traditional injection molding waste.

Sustainable Manufacturing and Circular Economy

As seen above, 3D printing and distributed manufacturing can help the environment by reducing waste and freight.

Additionally, using AI and Edge Computing can help build devices that maintain themselves, or schedule maintenance when needed, saving time and money. Also, some parts could continue to work while in good condition.

Unlike preventive maintenance, predictive maintenance replaces only the required part at the required time. Not only does it detect machine conditions that will lead to failure, but it also estimates the amount of time before it will occur, allowing service to be planned.

Also, pairing circular economy principles with information generated by billions of connected, intelligent devices, allows for innovation and sustainable use, extending product lifespan, and helping create a secondary use for them.

If you haven’t already read this articles, read Part 1: Technology trends to keep an eye on—Connectivity, and Part 2: Technology trends to keep an eye on—IoT, Edge Computing, AI / Machine Learning.