In today's digital age, the "cloud shift" is profoundly affecting everyone's lifestyle and the way every business operates.
◉ So, what is digital transformation?
◉ How do manufacturing companies digitally transform?
1
What is Digital Transformation?
First of all, regarding "digitization", there are two English words, which look similar, but the connotations are very different. One is Digitalization, which means to convert analog information into digital information (such as automatic identification of manually filled documents into digital information); the other is Digitalization, which refers to the integration of digital technologies into enterprises, deepening the application of various business software and emerging technologies such as the Internet of Things, realizing data-driven decision-making analysis, and revolutionizing enterprise business processes.
Digital Transformation is really the process by which businesses actually achieve Digitalization. The digital transformation of the life service industry for individuals is very rapid, and nowadays, we book air tickets, buy train tickets, rent a car, book hotels, shop, order meals and other life services can almost all be completed online through digital means, and the platform competition for various online services is very fierce.
For the manufacturing industry, industries facing individual consumers, such as home appliances, home, mobile phones, automobiles and other industries, the pressure of digital transformation is huge, and the transformation is relatively rapid; while the pace of digital transformation is relatively slow in the industry for enterprise customers, such as equipment manufacturing, energy, parts, raw materials and other industries.
No matter what type and industry it belongs to, every enterprise should think, establish, and promote the digital transformation strategy, and the deepening application of digital technology will have a profound impact on the business model, business operation, decision-making method, organizational form and corporate culture of the enterprise.
Accenture's analysis of the extent of digital transformation across industries
2
Digital transformation of manufacturing
What is the value?
With the increasing popularity of the Internet, the rapid development of computing and storage capabilities, the wide application of the Internet of Things and sensor technology, and the continuous evolution of industrial software, data acquisition, storage, transmission, display, analysis and optimization have a good technical foundation. In this context, the wave of digital transformation in the manufacturing industry is unstoppable.
Manufacturing companies that are good at deeply applying digital technologies will gain a significant competitive advantage. For example, through the timely insight into business data such as procurement, production, inventory, capital, quality, energy consumption, equipment status, etc., it can help enterprises to not only know all kinds of complex problems in operation management, but also know why they are so; through the collection and analysis of employees' work performance, they can further stimulate the potential of employees; by achieving personalized customization according to customer needs, customer satisfaction can be improved; through the collection and analysis of marketing data, they can truly know each other in the market and better serve customers;
Core Values of Digital Transformation (Source: MITECHNEWS.COM)
Excellent manufacturing enterprises are also committed to the digital transformation of the product itself, realizing data collection, status perception and remote control, improving the added value of products, and increasing service revenue. At the same time, only by promoting digital transformation can manufacturing companies cope with increasingly complex compliance requirements, especially for people's livelihood industries such as medicine and food, as well as export-oriented enterprises, they must achieve traceability of the entire production process through digital transformation.
3
Manufacturing companies drive digital transformation
What are the difficulties?
The complexity of manufacturing organizations, businesses, products and value chains creates many obstacles to the digital transformation of manufacturing enterprises. In fact, digital transformation is not the application of a single technology, nor is it just a technical proposition, but also a strategic and management proposition. Therefore, manufacturing companies need to deeply analyze the needs and breakthroughs of digital transformation and establish a clear roadmap for digital transformation. If there is no clear digital transformation strategy, the application of various fashionable Internet and Internet of Things related technologies will not only not really enhance the core competitiveness of enterprises, but also may have a huge investment, small benefits, and even lift a stone to drop their feet.
Specifically, the difficulties faced by manufacturing companies in promoting digital transformation include at least the following aspects:
(1) The senior management of the enterprise is not aware of the necessity, urgency and complexity of digital transformation, and the concept is still stuck in the deployment of commonly used IT systems. In fact, digital transformation is far from being achievable by IT departments, and must be led by the decision-making level of the enterprise and pushed from the top down.
(2) Enterprises have applied many information systems, but the islands are longitudinal, the basic data is inaccurate, the coding system is not uniform, and it is impossible to promote digital transformation.
(3) Many enterprises believe that the promotion of automation systems can be more immediate, and there is a general situation of heavy automation and light digitization. I have walked into many enterprises and found that enterprises pay more attention to the automation and less humanization of the production line, but the basis of equipment networking and data collection is poor, and the workshop does not really achieve visualization.
(4) Enterprises' investment in promoting digital transformation has not achieved significant results, which restricts the motivation of enterprises to further promote digital transformation. For example, although some companies have invested in self-built e-commerce platforms, in the era when traffic is king, customers are still controlled by mainstream e-commerce platforms, and self-built platforms have not achieved the expected results.
(5) The various subdivisions of the manufacturing industry are very different, the enterprises in different positions in the various industrial chains are highly personalized, and the breakthroughs in digital transformation are also different, and there is no template that can be directly copied.
(6) The profit margins of mainland manufacturing enterprises are low, and there is often a lack of sufficient capital to promote digital transformation.
4
Digital transformation
What is the relationship with smart manufacturing?
Promoting digital transformation of manufacturing enterprises is the basis and necessary condition for realizing intelligent manufacturing. Digitalization and automation are the two pillars of enterprises to achieve intelligent manufacturing, and the automation system must rely on the support of the digital system to achieve flexibility.
The application of artificial intelligence technology also depends on digital systems to collect, store and screen data. Academician Li Peigen pointed out that the promotion of intelligent manufacturing needs to pay attention to the research and development of enabling technologies. Digital systems and industrial software are among the most important enabling technologies underpinning smart manufacturing. In October 2018, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of the People's Republic of China officially approved the establishment of the National Digital Design and Manufacturing Innovation Center, which shows that the state attaches great importance to promoting the digital transformation of the manufacturing industry and is committed to realizing the independent research and development and innovation of key enabling technologies for intelligent manufacturing.
In 2016, e-works proposed a pyramid architecture for smart manufacturing, which received widespread attention from the industry. At the bottom of the pyramid is the enabling technology layer, including ICT technology, industrial automation technology, advanced manufacturing technology, modern enterprise management and artificial intelligence technology; the second layer is to promote intelligent products and intelligent services to achieve business model innovation; the third layer is to deploy intelligent equipment, establish intelligent production lines, build intelligent workshops, build smart factories, and realize the innovation of production models; the fourth layer is to carry out intelligent management, intelligent research and development and intelligent logistics supply chain to achieve the innovation of operating models The fifth layer is intelligent decision-making, which realizes the innovation of decision-making mode. In fact, for all aspects of intelligent manufacturing applications, digital technology provides important support:
● Smart products: CPS, adas, product performance simulation
● Intelligent services: Digital twin, condition monitoring, Internet of Things, virtual reality and augmented reality
● Intelligent equipment: CAM system, additive manufacturing support software
● Intelligent production line: FMS control software system, collaborative robot control system
● Smart Shop: Data Acquisition (SCADA), Shop Floor Networking, MES, APS
● Smart factory: visual inspection, equipment health management, process simulation
● Intelligent R&D: CAD, CAE, EDA, PLM, embedded software, design cost management, DFM analysis, topology optimization
● Intelligent management: ERP, CRM, EAM, SRM, MDM, quality management, enterprise portal
Intelligent Logistics and Supply Chain: AGV, SLAM, Automated Warehouse, WMS, TMS, DPS (Digital Picking System)
● Intelligent decision-making: BI, industrial big data, EPM (enterprise performance management), mobile applications
5
Manufacturing enterprises
How to advance digital transformation?
To promote digital transformation, manufacturing enterprises must clarify their digital transformation strategies, formulate digital transformation plans, and then realize the landing of the plans. In this process, manufacturing enterprises need to use professional consulting services to complete the process of digital transformation status diagnosis, demand analysis, process sorting, overall framework design and implementation plan formulation.
◉ The first step is to assess the current state of digital transformation.
e-works launched the maturity assessment system of the integration of the two in 2011, with six major industry versions, and later launched the intelligent manufacturing and smart factory evaluation system, and the relevant research institutions of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology also launched the relevant evaluation system. Manufacturing enterprises can assess the status of digital transformation to understand the depth, breadth and application effect of digital technology applications in all aspects of the value chain, what breakpoints exist in the application of digital technologies, and compare each branch and benchmark with industry benchmarks, so as to clarify the basis for digital transformation of enterprises.
◉ The second step is to analyze the opportunities and breakthroughs in the digital transformation of enterprises.
Through extensive internal research and industry best practice analysis, combined with the industry's standard specifications and compliance needs, based on the development strategy of the enterprise, the needs of enterprises to promote digital transformation are sorted out, and the breakthrough point for enterprises to promote digital transformation is determined according to the importance and feasibility.
◉ The third step is to clarify the overall framework of the enterprise's digital system.
Analyze how the business processes of enterprises should be optimized in the process of digital transformation, determine the key assessment indicators for digital transformation of enterprises, formulate the overall framework of digital systems, and clarify the overall plan for digital transformation in the next three to five years.
◉ The fourth step is to determine the roadmap for the digital transformation of the enterprise.
Clarify the specific functions, deployment methods and integration schemes of each digital system; determine data collection, device networking, IT and OT integration schemes; formulate annual investment plans for digital transformation; clarify the organizational system for promoting digital transformation; analyze the investment returns of digital transformation; and predict possible risks and avoidance strategies in the digital transformation process.
◉ The fifth step is to implement the digital transformation plan and revise the plan in a timely manner.
The planning of digital transformation should also be planned every three years, rolling every year. Enterprises should conduct an annual inspection of the status of digital transformation, and revise the digital transformation plan in light of the changes in the actual situation of the enterprise and the development of emerging technologies. At the same time, enterprises should attach great importance to the core team building of digital transformation, combine IT departments, automation departments, planning departments and departments that promote lean, and hire external expert consultants to ensure that the digital transformation process of enterprises is step by step and achieves tangible benefits.
To promote digital transformation, the enterprise is the main body. To truly achieve digital transformation, it is necessary for the senior management of enterprises to have determination and perseverance, truly understand the connotation of digital transformation, and lead the process of digital transformation.
Digital transformation can not engage in formalism, formalities, nor does it need to be large and complete, it must be based on the needs of the enterprise itself, its position in the industrial chain, the strength and development vision of the enterprise to formulate a personalized digital transformation strategy.