July/August 2020

www.smartmachinesandfactories.com July/August 2020 | 21 | | STRATEGIES | responsibility for the uptime of their machine. A serviced offering Continuing on with the vision of external capabilities, the survey shows that one in four (23%) would use digital solutions to offer new business models to customers. These results underpin what was mentioned in part one, that it will no longer be enough for manufacturers to sell products and innovations to customers and produce them at a reasonable cost. Addressing the increasingly complex customer requirements, manufacturers need to meet these satisfaction levels and improve their supply chain operations. In fact, more than a third (39%) cite better monitoring and management of products after they leave the plant as their vision for their Smart Factory capabilities. By offering additional data-based services or new “as-a- service” business models, manufacturers can use the Smart Factory for the most important people outside the plant: Customers The biggest external driver of Smart Factory deployment comes as no surprise, with 62% of survey respondents saying their company vision with the Smart Factory is to improve customer satisfaction. This goes hand-in-glove with services and supply chain drivers as the added product customisation and as-a- service models are all geared towards improving the customer experience. As a customer of a Smart Factory, what does your experience look like? As mentioned above, the smart supply chain would have already identified any particular external factors, such as weather, that would influence the buying decision. With the agile manufacturing that the Smart Factory allows, your chosen product may include several customisations that the manufacturer will be able to fulfil. Finally, with connected vehicles and other smart technology deployed the delivery stage is simple and efficient. Going even further, for original equipment manufacturers charging customers for usage with an as-a- service model, the uptime and maintenance is your responsibility, with the real-time monitoring and predictive maintenance you can be sure your asset is healthy. On the factory floor All the above statistics and points paint a clear picture of the future of the Smart Factory, a customer-focused agile offering, using the latest digital technologies to improve the customer experience. That’s where it is going, so where is the Smart Factory now? Figure 3 shows the elements of the Smart Factory that are being Figure 2 Figure 3