By 2022, "almost two-thirds (64%) of manufacturers say they expect to be fully connected," and the means of connection includes a mix of RFID (radio-frequency identification), wearables, and automated systems.
This statistic is from a 2017 report by Zebra Technologies, "Quality Drives A Smarter Plant Floor: 2017 Manufacturing Vision Study." Last August, writer James Bourne discussed the report in the article, "Manufacturers embracing the IIoT set to rise dramatically by 2022, new report argues," at the IoT Tech Expo website.
IIoT is set to transform manufacturing
As technology evolves, Bourne points out, older methods are shed, such as using paper and pen. Although "more than three in five (62%) of those polled said they still use pen and paper to track manufacturing steps," he writes, the number, "is expected to drop to one in five by 2022."
Another connected technology on the rise is voice direction and recognition. Larger companies stand to gain the most in this area because of their need to get rid of excessive inventory storage. Prime areas voice technologies will emerge within, the report says, include factories which use just-in-time manufacturing and automation processes.
Infographic source: 2017 Manufacturing Vision Study, Zebra Technologies
Infographic source: 2017 Manufacturing Vision Study, Zebra Technologies
Manufacturers express growing confidence
Quoting colleague Alex Vilner, Bourne asks, "do manufacturing engineers really want IIoT right now?" His answer is yes but, “...all in good time." Vilner says that, "In the world of manufacturing engineering, the general consensus on new technology is ‘build it, prove it, build it again, prove it again…and then prove it again’.”
Infographic source: 2017 Manufacturing Vision Study, Zebra Technologies
