The fourth industrial revolution is characterised by the development of the factory as a network of smart and interactive elements, integrated upwards and downwards with supply and distribution chains, able to respond quickly and effectively to critical issues and challenges facing the industrial world. Internet of Things, 3D Printing, Big Data and Data Analytics, Augmented Reality, Advanced Robotics, Wearable Technologies, are some of the key words for this change, bringing significant benefits for companies and for those who understand its importance in a timely manner.
The digital transformation of companies, according to the models of "Industria 4.0" and "Impresa 4.0", represents a key challenge for the Italian automotive industry which, through the use of Smart Manufacturing tools, will be able to:
- sustaining employment, overcoming the dichotomy between automation and employment and creating new and evolved professional people at all levels (e.g. maintenance technician 4.0, adaptive process technician, big data expert, dynamic planner)
- enable all partners in the sector to have access to international markets and processes to increase competitiveness, using their skills and decentralisation, not necessarily their relocation
- reducing time to market through digital platforms that allow the client to personalise the car, allowing the OEM to receive the specifications in real time and allowing the supply chain to respond in a dynamic, fluent and coordinated manner
- developing smart storage systems that allow for automatic order generation and its smooth management, thus reducing warehouse capacity and investment in stocks with a view in particular to just-in-time production
- increasing efficiency no longer on the basis of macro-lots and large volumes, but by aiming at adaptive sub-scale economies: complexity becomes a source of added value, since it is possible to reduce management costs through digitisation
- reducing accidents in the workplace by means of clearer information and training systems linked to the flow of operational activities which can be accessed remotely and are based on a visual and contextual approach suited to the user
- creating a new generation of handling and automation systems which are safer, more predictable, less cumbersome and able to operate in closer contact with humans. They do not replace qualified manual skills but reduce their repetitive and harmful aspects, thereby increasing the productive and qualitative efficiency of the workflow
- to network the numerous high-quality products available throughout the country
ANFIA, with a view to raising awareness and continuous updating for its members, has organised several seminars to provide technical and practical in-depth analysis throughout Italy. These seminars are aimed at providing skills and insights to deal with the changes taking place in automotive manufacturing, as well as illustrating to companies in the sector the opportunities and potential of tools introduced by the Government's National Plan for Industry 4.0 and Enterprise 4.0 and the additional tax measures provided for in the 2017 Budget Law.
The objective of the meetings is, therefore, to inform companies about the financing opportunities offered by the national facilitating instruments (hyper/depreciation, training bonus 4.0, Nuova Sabatini, Guarantee Fund), to provide useful information on the areas of activity of the same and to answer any doubts of the operators.
ANFIA also actively participated in the Expert Group set up within MISE (Italian Ministry of Economic Development) for the preparation of the "Guidelines on Hyper Amortisation", which were subsequently incorporated into the joint MISE-Inland Revenue Circular no. 4/E of 30/03/2017 (http://www.camera.it/temiap/allegati/2017/03/31/OCD177-2828.pdf).
Go to the portal "Industria 4.0 e Iperammortamento"
Also part of the Intelligent Factory framework is the European SURE 5.0 Project, in which ANFIA is a partner along with Initiative. SURE 5.0 focuses on the collaboration of three industrial ecosystems of mobility, aerospace and electronics, which are of fundamental importance in Europe, and aims to support the transition of SMEs involved in the adaptation of their production systems, leveraging digitalization and enabling technologies, and, at the same time, promoting the key principles of Industry 5.0: sustainability, resilience and the centrality of the human dimension. Industry 5.0, in this sense, should not be understood as a chronological continuation or an alternative to the existing Industry 4.0 paradigm: rather, it is a way of framing how European industry, trends, and emerging societal needs will coexist. As such, Industry 5.0 complements and extends the distinctive features of Industry 4.0 and emphasizes aspects that will be decisive factors in positioning manufacturing in the future European society, factors that are not only economic or technological in nature, but also have important environmental and social dimensions.