Innovations Enabled by Industrial IoT Accelerate the Shift to Manufacturing 4.0

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Manufacturing across the globe is on the threshold of a revolution, with Industrial Internet of Things (Industrial IoT) enabling manufacturers to influence the capacity of objects to communicate with and sense the world around them. This newfound ability of machines to help analyze and streamline processes is attracting investments and creating numerous opportunities for manufacturers. With Industrial IoT, the Industry 4.0 manufacturing environment will be fast, automated and customer oriented. 

IIoT Market Watch—A Snapshot of the Most Promising Companies in the Industrial Landscape, part of Frost & Sullivan's Industrial Automation & Process Control Growth Partnership Subscription, analyzes various trends in Industrial IoT and segments the existing and emerging companies under each trend. The Industrial IoT providers covered include existing vendors that have been prominent in the industrial domain as well as many emerging IoT companies that are entering and diversifying into the industrial space.

“Industrial IoT enables factories to unlock operational efficiency, optimize production as well as assets and increase worker safety,” said Frost & Sullivan Industrial Automation & Process Control Research Analyst Anisha Nikash Dumbre. “Recognizing these advantages, developed economies like Europe and the U.S. are eager to adopt Big Data, augmented reality (AR) and other Industrial IoT trends in the manufacturing space. Emerging economies like Asia-Pacific are also making significant progress toward deploying Industrial IoT technologies.” 

Although a growing number of companies are becoming aware of the importance of Industrial IoT, there is still a gap in understanding the extent of the impact it can have on their businesses. Companies are also deterred by the inherent complexities and costs involved in deploying Industrial IoT services; however, this can be overcome through a phased implementation. Even the advanced skills needed to apply the technologies optimally can be acquired through partnerships and skills development programs. 

Some of the most prominent adopters of Industrial IoT across the world are GE, Siemens, Bosch, PTC, Waygum, Hitachi and Zebra Technologies. These market majors have considerable industrial expertise and have established a strong footprint in Industrial IoT services on their own or through partnerships with other major vendors. 

“Industrial IoT is truly the next big technology wave in the global industrial market. The availability of low-cost sensors and Cloud IoT platforms will prove to be a game changer in manufacturing,” noted Dumbre. “Additionally, technologies such as AR and virtual reality will cause paradigm shifts in product design, engineering and after-sales services. In due course, businesses will move from product-based models to service-based models.” 

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