Cloud and Mobility: Cloud and the proliferation of smart mobile devices have created a sea change in the way companies do things. Access to company information on-the-go, 24*7 is creating a connected workforce. Every unit, from Engineering to Marketing to the shop floor and the supply chain, has access to data and knowledge digitally. A direct result of this is the emergence of digital technical publications, digital mockups and walkthroughs that are making several processes better and creating digital worker.
The Internet-of-Things (IoT) and Big Data: The manufacturing industry is going to continue to rely on data to make operations much more streamlined and efficient. Benefits of IoT include predictive maintenance of machinery, supply chain visibility and ‘bridging the gap' between production and those at the corporate level. Engineering data will percolate across organizations and become a single source of truth. Every function- be it engineering, supply chain, manufacturing, aftermarket, product management, marketing, sales-will see and use the same product engineering information.
All sorts of things - wearable devices, industrial equipment, drones, cars, aircraft, your seat, everything -will contribute to data. Much of the data will be real time, bringing opportunities for real time decision making and asset performance enhancements. Engineering Analytics will continue evolving, allowing us to build autonomous, semi-autonomous systems and predictive, prognostics and diagnostics based systems and also help designers to use existing data for new product designs.
Robotics and 3D Printing: The increasing affordability of general-purpose robotics is influencing the industry's reinvention. More affordable robots will mean smaller manufacturing companies can turn to automation. The rise of robots in the manufacturing sector has sparked a debate about employment, however new roles will be created by, catalyzing a new era of innovation and product development.
In 2015, we saw big advances in the quality, speed, and abilities of 3D printers. Although they have not quite become mainstream yet, it seems inevitable that new technology in 3D printing will lead us to produce products from prescription drugs to food to new homes and even human organs. The health industry is bound to immensely benefit from this technology in the coming years.
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