Expectations for Industry 4.0 are high. A study commissioned by BITKOM and the Fraunhofer IAO predicts that a potential 23 billion euros of added value will be created by 2015 for manufacturing systems and plant engineering in Germany alone. The effects are seen particularly in the network-like use of operating, status and environment data as well as in the implementation of intuitive operational concepts and simple configurations. According to the study, embedded systems, smart factories, robust networks, cloud computing and IT security are the driving forces behind this development.

The technologies that industries need in order to unleash these new forces will be shown at the Digital Factory trade fair in April.

It therefore provides the basis for Industry 4.0.

The range of IT solutions at Digital Factory includes innovations and initial ideas using CAx and MES and ERP for production planning and control, simulations and projections using virtual reality and 3D models of product and factories, as well as management of product and manufacturing data throughout the entire product life cycle with PDM and PLM. The world’s leading providers of such solutions include Dassault Systèmes, Microsoft, PTC, SAP, Siemens PLM Software, PSIPENTA and BOSCH Software Innovations. They are represented in Hall 7 along with numerous SMEs and start-ups.

Additive manufacturing will be showcased specifically at Digital Factory. At the Additive Manufacturing Plaza individualized 3D products will be manufactured live. Names that resonate in the sector such as alphacam, ExOne, Kisters and voxeljet are represented at the Plaza. The injection molding specialist Arburg is an exclusive partner.

"The exhibition halls at the Hannover Exhibition Center will be home to the most advanced production technology possible. If you’re looking for ways of making your factory more competitive, you’ll be sure to find them in Hannover," says Dr. Jochen Köckler, Member of the Managing Board at Deutsche Messe AG.

In addition to Digital Factory, the technology leap to Industry 4.0 can be experienced especially at Industrial Automation. Experts at "Forum Industry 4.0" (Hall 8) present solutions for optimized automation and efficient product lifecycle management. Server-based IT solutions for the world of automation can be found at the Industrial IT theme park in Hall 8. In addition to Industry 4.0, the buzzwords here include embedded systems, industry PCs, servers, cloud computing, communication, software and security. The 7th MES Conference held simultaneously at the Convention Center illustrates how production and manufacturing processes can be designed efficiently with the aid of intelligent MES solutions.

Digital Factory