Smart Factories to Help Manufacturing Companies to Reduce Wastage
Smart factories primarily connect every manufacturing component and process across the value chain. The interconnection of production and information has transformed the global automation industry, thus facilitating manufacturing plants to perform better. Smart factories enable manufacturing companies to achieve their targets of zero wastage and shortest time to the market. Smart factories use various control devices including motors, switches and relays, sensors, and drivers. Many network technologies, such as wireless, wired, and radio frequency identification (RFID), are used by smart factories.
Smart factories also use many integrated systems including manufacturing execution system (MES), programmable logic control (PLC), supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA), enterprise resource planning (ERP), and Information Technology (IT) systems, to fulfill specific needs of the manufacturing plants. Further, smart factories use certain industrial robots including selective compliance assembly robot arm (SCARA), articulated robots, cylindrical robots, and cartesian robots, to manage different manufacturing procedures such as welding, lifting, conveyance, and painting.
Increasing Need to Save Energy to Propel Smart Factory Market Globally
An increasing need to improve the efficiency of production and save energy in manufacturing procedures will drive the global smart factory market during the forecast period. The rise of the Internet of Things (IoT), technical advancements, improved manufacturing procedures, and integration of manufacturing and engineering procedures has resulted in a positive leap forward for the global smart factory market. The growth of the global smart factory market is predicted to be restricted due to a lack of interoperability and standardization issues. Shortage of skillful workers will further hamper the development of the global smart factory market during the forecast period. Cyber security threats are predicted to limit the development of the global smart factory market in industries such as armaments, nuclear, and weapons. However, technical developments such as machine-to-machine interaction will allow smart factories to save time and efforts.
The global smart factory market is expected to expand rapidly during the forecast period due to different industries such as packaging, automotive and transportation, minerals and metals, pharmaceuticals, and chemicals investing in smart factories. Smart factories also serve process industries namely oil and gas and others. Prominent players in the global smart factory market have invested greatly in venturing into unexplored industries. With this, the global smart factory market can expect opportunities in applications such as control devices and industrial robots.
By geography, the global smart factory market is classified into North America, Europe, Latin America, and Asia Pacific. Some of the leading players in the global smart factory market are Intel Corporation, CMC Associates, Honeywell International Inc., Emerson Electric Co., Teledyne Technologies Inc., National Instruments Corporation, Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, General Electric Co., and General Dynamics Corporation.
