The merging of the Digital (IT) and Physical (OT) worlds is ushering in Intelligent Manufacturing technologies, irrespective of whether enterprises employ continuous, discrete or hybrid production processes. Businesses are realizing that the only way to survive in the increasingly complex manufacturing world is to be data-driven.

So what would a future-ready manufacturing enterprise look like? To begin with, smart and connected Production Assets (Production Equipment + Machines), Utility Assets and Automation Assets, integrated with input logistics as well as output logistics, would be table stake.

But more importantly, leaving aside product quality and operational efficiency which would continue to hold extreme importance, the critical differentiator would lie in the enterprise’s ability to take advantage of the data inside the organization. To create new business models, both end-users and OEMs will now have to embrace and adapt to this new paradigm shift of data-driven complexity.