What is Industry 4.0

Industry 4.0 is a term that has been around for about a decade already. Also known as the fourth industrial revolution, it’s a term that’s quietly slipped by a lot of people’s radars. A quick recap is required. The first industrial revolution occurred in the late 1700’s with the advent of steam and coal power and genesis of the manufacturing industry taking over from agriculture as the backbone of the global economy.  

The second industrial revolution took place in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s with the onset of new energy sources, electricity, oil, and gas, along with process refinements in the factory such as the assembly line.  

The third industrial revolution took place in the mid 20^th century with the development of computerization and automation. As of today, we are now amid the fourth industrial revolution, aka Industry 4.0, the rapid technological advancement of the 21^st century, specifically the digital transformation of the modern factory and the adoption of cloud computing and the internet of things (Industrial IoT). 

Why Should You Care About Industry 4.0? 

Why is this important now heading into 2025 if it’s already been around for ten years? In 2023 Microsoft produced a report on the state of Industrial IoT, as a core aspect of Industry 4.0, (you can sign up to receive it here: https://info.microsoft.com/ww-landing-digital-operations-signals-iiot.html).  

A key introductory supposition of this report, its fifth edition, is that Industrial IoT has now moved beyond the early adoption phase to the edge of becoming fully mainstream. More and more industries are now focusing strategy on adoption and implementation of Industry 4.0. Those that do not, risk being left behind in an increasingly competitive space. 

Microsoft’s report also highlights that adoption is now becoming easier, faster, cheaper and more successful as the solutions become more widely available and mature. 

 Increasingly, there are buy options for many of the Industry 4.0 components, and with more and more technology partners the options for custom or hybrid solutions are almost limitless.  

Now is the time for companies to accelerate into the future with their own adoption strategy. Improving Winnipeg has already assisted a major manufacturing company with their own digital transformation. Ask us how we can help! 

In the remainder of this six-part blog series, we’ll dig deeper into Industry 4.0 to look at the benefits, challenges, key components, some Microsoft services and technologies in this space, and finally how you can begin your own Industry 4.0 adoption process.  

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