The new industrial revolution is changing how manufacturers operate today and plan for the future, influencing a significant transformation in manufacturing, engineering and factory-floor industries. Adding to this, manufacturers are under pressure to meet the demand for faster delivery of new products, coupled with shorter production lifecycles. Organizations are adopting agile, flexible production plant systems and processes to adapt and evolve, so as to remain competitive and profitable. Customers are looking for plants and machines will have to be smarter, better connected, more efficient, flexible, and safe.
The IIoT vision of the world is one where smart connected assets (the things) with varying levels of intelligent functionality, ranging from simple sensing and actuating, to control, optimization and full autonomous operation, operate as part of a larger system. These systems are based on open and standard Internet and cloud technologies that enable secure access to devices and information in order to leverage big data and analytics and mobility technologies to drive greater business value.
