Manufacturing, specifically the processes involved in physically transforming materials into goods for sale, is becoming quite fashionable. Not more than ten years ago, many companies considered their factories deadweight, assets to be arbitraged, while new production moved to low-cost regions, particularly in Asia. A variety of factors has changed the perception of manufacturing. What has emerged is a construct referred to as smart manufacturing. At its core, smart manufacturing is the convergence of data acquisition, analytics, and automated control to improve the overall effectiveness of a company's factory network. The intent of the IDC PlanScape methodology is to provide clients with a framework for creating a business plan by answering four essential questions — why, what, who, and how. This IDC PlanScape provides a strategy guide for implementing smart manufacturing.
Key findings of the new report include:
- Use the overall equipment effectiveness (OEE) equation to understand the potential benefits, and tie those benefits to financial metrics such as revenue, costs, and asset levels to justify investment.
- Broaden the OEE beyond individual pieces of equipment to look at the overall impact on product lines, factories, and the whole network of production facilities.
- Technology investment can be separated into capabilities related to connectivity, data acquisition, analytics, and actuation.
- A unifying architecture is required to bring the technology pieces together.
- Move toward an integrated governance model that incorporates both operation technology (OT) and information technology (IT) resources.
- Choose an investment cadence based on the level of executive support for smart manufacturing.
About IDC PlanScape
IDC PlanScape reports help to assure business value is recognized from technology by developing a technology initiative that is aligned with business goals, scoped to succeed, and properly resourced. By helping technology leaders make the case for a technology initiative, recognize unique resource requirements, and identify risk factors, IDC PlanScapes mitigate the greatest risks associated with technology initiatives.
About IDC Manufacturing Insights
IDC Manufacturing Insights assists manufacturing businesses and IT leaders, as well as the suppliers who serve them in making more effective technology decisions by providing accurate, timely, and insightful fact-based research and consulting services. Staffed by senior analysts with decades of industry experience, our global research analyzes and advises on business and technology issues facing asset intensive, brand oriented, technology oriented, and engineering oriented manufacturing industries. International Data Corporation (IDC) is the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events for the information technology market. IDC is a subsidiary of IDG, the world’s leading technology, media, research, and events company. For more information, please visit www.idc-mi.com, email info@idc-mi.com, or call 508-988-7900. Visit the IDC Manufacturing Insights Community at http://idc-community.com/....