IT Solutions for the Digital Transformation of the Manufacturing Industry

Modern technologies enable companies to supplement the traditional core business of the manufacturing industry with innovative services - even completely new business models are possible, such as subscription models or customized production.

Digital customer folders that update themselves automatically, customer KPIs available at the click of a button, mobile sales apps, or self-service customer portals: Sales needs new, digital tools in order to cope with changing customer behavior and a modern customer journey. 

The way into larger data spaces shared with third parties places high demands on the company's own data. Manufacturing companies need not only data lakes and interfaces, but also well thought-out concepts for the preparation, dissemination and sovereignty of their data treasure, right through to questions of pricing, the DSGVO or lock-in effects.

The way to the Data Driven Enterprise leads through process management: What happens in the company? How do processes run? Are the KPIs right? Are decisions necessary? Where does automation lend itself? Process mining can be used to identify unused cost and speed advantages, management works with live data, and process governance for quality standards such as ISO9001 is simplified.

Once the connectivity concept for the shopfloor is in place, the IIoT platform can be quickly and easily supplemented with additional software modules from third-party providers - while retaining full control over the IT architecture. This allows companies to implement highly customized IT landscapes for any manufacturing niche, for example with software for energy management, logistics or automated quality control using image-based AI.

The Digital Twin connects the real world with the digital world - with a cornucopia of possibilities to optimize the value chain. More and more companies are exploiting the potential of software simulation for quality assurance or product development, for example. Sustainability documentation (ESG) and new services are also exciting fields of application. For example, customers can access the lifecycle of machines via a portal, with manuals, spare parts lists, etc.

Sustainability transformation is one of the biggest tasks facing industry in the coming decade. In addition to legally compliant documentation of the ecological footprint, this also involves green business models, green IT, and resilience factors such as a strong and flexible supply chain.

Hacker attacks and other IT security incidents can bring production to a standstill and result in enormous costs and damage to the company‘s image, especially when sensitive company data is involved. Therefore, the company must effectively protect IT systems against modern attack methods to detect threats in good time, evaluate them and initiate countermeasures. Modern Cybersecurity concepts combine preventive measures with breach detection systems.

People increasingly work remotely or in distributed teams, using digital applications and cloud computing, from the office to the shop floor to the warehouse. As with the physical workplace, the digital workspace's design, management, and maintenance play an important role - not only for productivity but also for well-being, team spirit, and a healthy corporate culture.

Where necessary, the existing IT landscape will be transferred step by step to the cloud and thus made fit for data analysis and data exchange, networking, and the platform economy of the future.

An important part of the Digital Backbone in manufacturing is a system landscape that is as homogeneous and robust as possible: Transformation backlogs are worked through, and the software architecture is orchestrated to be as low-maintenance as possible - with the Basic Systems SAP, Microsoft, AWS, Google Cloud & Co as standard, while industry-specific requirements are mapped in the cloud.

No company can afford to replace its existing machinery at the start of Digitization. Therefore, various machine types must be "made to talk" and connected to the cloud via interfaces. To prevent all sensor data from being transferred unfiltered to the data center, edge IoT solutions are needed that consolidate the data on the shop floor.