What This Means
If you look only at one country’s initiative you’ll have a limited view of the global movement. You must look at global standards to understand global impact.
So rather than the name of the initiative that differentiates the work, it’s the standards behind that initiative that make the difference.
The Time to Start is Now
For organizations hesitant to start their journey to Smart Manufacturing until new standards are complete, I say: Get started. There’s no reason to wait.
Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) standards (I4.0) will take decades to come to the ideal state where data flows seamlessly among multi-vendor applications and devices.
But rather than see that as a reason to delay, I see that as a reason to start now.
Industry is slow to adapt to new technologies, mostly because it can take decades to replace existing assets with new, Smart Manufacturing versions. The transition should take place in phases.
Smart Manufacturing is not a moment in time. A good strategy thinks about how to use current standards to facilitate change that matters today – and support future evolution.
Why it Matters
The Connected Enterprise leverages the best of the international standards that define Smart Manufacturing today. National initiatives and industry consortia are monitored and enhanced so The Connected Enterprise will leverage the best of future international standards as they emerge.
That’s going to be important when we talk about another aspect of Smart Manufacturing: speed.
Speed is a challenge for everyone. International standards that support Operations Technology (OT) are mature and can take a few years to evolve. In IT, the timing is more in months. Like apps on your phone, there’s always something new. By the time a standard can form around it, there’s something newer.
