Steinbeis convention in Karlsruhe examines the challenges of digital transformation in SME production processes
Autonomous production and digital factories – key issues revolving around Industry 4.0 that caused pearls of sweat to run down people’s foreheads in the early years … at the prospect of empty production halls with not a soul in sight. With so many companies finding their order books full in recent years, there has also been an increasing tendency among SMEs to be cautiously reluctant about digital transformation. Another reason for Steinbeis experts to tackle the topic at the next Industry 4.0 at SMEs conference. The event will take place for the third time on March 1, 2018 in the Steinbeis House on the campus of Karlsruhe University of Applied Sciences.
Shedding light on issues from an SME angle should make it easier for such companies to make a sensible start with digital transformation in production. The 2018 convention will mainly look at the topic of digital solutions in production, posing questions such as:
- What business models do SMEs need to be part of the digital technology vision?
- What can SMEs do to automate processes that are causing problems in the factory?
- What’s the best way to manage the leap from Industry 2.0 to 4.0 and keep people on board?
Business leaders at the event will discuss model-based forecasting methods for managing data complexity, maturity models adapted to the needs of SMEs for ascertaining how far they have come with digital solutions, and people’s experiences with digital transformation. The glass lab at the university in Karlsruhe allows people at the convention to practically look over the shoulder of cyber-physical production systems in operation.