Branche: SME

Any networked information system that is used in the context of manufacturing and logistics in a factory can be referred to as factory software. This article describes six trends that will significantly influence the way software is used in factories in the near future. The trends are described in ascending order in terms of significance of impact.

Additive manufacturing processes are becoming increasingly important in industry and enable the cost-e ective production of complex components in small quantities. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in particular can bene t from the high customization potential enabling the development of new business models. However, the widespread use of additive processes faces high production costs and technological challenges. Meanwhile, scienti c research focuses on the optimization of individual process steps of additive manufacturing and does not o er su cient support for SMEs. Therefore, this paper deals with the development of a cross-process value chain of additive manufacturing for SMEs. Based on a systematic analysis of scienti c literature, relevant additive manufacturing processes were investigated, and a cross-process value chain was derived. The results were veri ed by expert interviews and central research and development requirements were extracted.

The diffusion of networked, intelligent products and production goods within the framework of Industry 4.0 is not only changing production, but is also causing the emergence of new forms of value creation and new types of business models that offer products and services in an integrated manner. This trend is called hybrid value creation and aims to offer customers holistic and individual solutions. The development of such business models requires a multi-criterial feasibility study. This paper deals with the specifics of the feasibility study of hybrid value creation business models.

Innovation activity in the industrial environment is shifting towards product-service systems as a result of digitalisation. Small and medium-sized enterprises have so far focused their development activities strongly on product development. The switch to “smart” products and the coupling to services often requires personnel and financial resources that SMEs cannot provide. Crowdsourcing is one way of opening up the innovation process to external actors and realising cost and speed advantages. However, the integration of crowdsourcing elements faces several challenges. This article shows both the potentials and the barriers of crowdsourcing in the industrial environment.

The implementation of Industry 4.0 solutions offers great potential for meeting growing challenges in the context of digitization. Nevertheless, particularly small and medium-sized companies are hesitant to implement Industry 4.0 solutions. Within the framework of the ERDF research project »Synus«, methods and tools were developed to support small and medium-sized companies in the evaluation and selection of Industry 4.0 solutions. This contribution presents the potential model, which enables small and medium-sized enterprises to select suitable Industry 4.0 solutions.