4 Trends that Will Shape the Manufacturing Industry in 2020
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4 Trends that Will Shape the Manufacturing Industry in 2020

Manufacturing Technology Insights | Thursday, January 09, 2020

Developments in bio-sensing now permit health parameters like heart rate, body temperature, and blood oxygen levels to be monitored. Additionally, employers now have the aptitude to leverage the information they obtain to balance welfare programs and decrease healthcare expenses.

FREMONT, CA: Both the pressing and long-term future of the manufacturing industry will be defined by the expansion of several ever-changing and cutting-edge trends and technologies. Most of which are positioned to have a meaningful impact in 2020, so it is important for firms to develop a sharp understanding of their functionality, growth over time, and how they will affect those within the business—both this year and in the future.

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Below are four manufacturing trends to watch in 2020:

1. Wearable Technology 

Ascend of the Internet of Things (IoT) in industrial applications has given way to the improved occurrence of wearable technology in the manufacturing sector. Manufacturers of all types and sizes are progressively looking into and investing in wearable devices with diverse sensors that can be employed by their employees.

According to a recent article, an electronic feature found in wearable devices facilitates organizations to scrutinize and increase workplace productivity and safety. Besides, employers are now readily competent in collecting valuable data, tracking activities, and offering customized experiences depending on desires. Developments in bio-sensing now permit health parameters like heart rate, body temperature, and blood oxygen levels to be monitored. Additionally, employers now have the aptitude to leverage the information they obtain to balance welfare programs and decrease healthcare expenses.

2. Predictive Maintenance

Efficient equipment maintenance is essential to the success of any company. So the ability to foresee impending failures and alleviate downtime is precious. Predictive maintenance offers that and much more and ultimately gives manufacturers the means to enhance maintenance jobs in real-time, expanding the life of their machinery and circumventing disruption to their operations.

However, predictive maintenance is not without its challenges. To build a successful predictive maintenance model, manufacturers ought to gain insights on the variables they are gathering and how often certain variable behaviors occur on the factory floor.

Firms must possess knowledge about every machine and a reliable data set of preceding failures in which they can review. What’s more, manufacturers also have to make decisions around lead time as the quicker the machine is allowed to breakdown, the more precise the prediction.

3. 5G or Smart Manufacturing

Smart factories are becoming the standard in manufacturing, and they rely on connected devices to leverage technologies such as artificial intelligence, automation, IoT, and more. Furthermore, these devices are competent in sensing their surroundings and interacting with one another. As factories of the future persist in growing, manufacturers need to realize that they should be able to adapt the networks that connect them–competently and effectively.

Besides, 5G networks offer industry opportunities to generate new revenue streams. Along with energy and utility, the business stands to gain the most from the rise of 5G. A report states that the projected addressable market in 2026 will be $113 billion, a considerable 7 percent potential revenue growth from existing service revenue forecasts.

The factories of tomorrow will rely genuinely on sensor technology, and they will notably feature connected tools making use of data to guide the tasks of the workforce. Accordingly, 5G’s high capacity, low-latency performance, and wireless flexibility make it the ideal choice to support manufacturers in these efforts.

4. Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality

When it comes to employing Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) in manufacturing, there is endless potential. Whether it is helping make processes more competent, improving product design and development, or preserving machinery more efficiently, the technologies are capable of becoming game-changers in the upcoming years.

VR lets its users move around a 360-degree virtual world and, in some cases, even interact with it. When using VR, real, physical settings are no longer a factor. With the advancements in technology, the virtual world is being reproduced better than before. AR differs in the sense that its users are required to be at a particular location to augment their experience of reality. In contrast, those who use virtual reality are entirely immersed in a virtual world. Manufacturers are becoming more proficient at finding ways to integrate these technologies within their organizations in an attempt to drive a future defined by digital connectivity. Also, it is observed that manufacturers today have adopted or will adopt AR and VR in the coming years.

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