Perspectives

Benefits of smart factories

Investing in smart factory systems to build value

The smart factory of the Fourth Industrial Revolution could unlock the key to productivity for manufacturers. And every manufacturer—from those already “running smart” to those not yet investing in smart factory technologies—can take steps that will yield business value.

Smart factories: Trends in adoption, maturity, and value realization

Manufacturers are digitizing and connecting factories to realize the benefits of the fourth industrial revolution. What opportunities and challenges are they encountering as they shift toward smart factories, and how are human and cyber roles changing? Paul Wellener, US Industrial Products & Construction leader, discusses:

  • The maturity roadmap for smart factories and where manufacturers are today.
  • Common digital capabilities of smart factories and how manufacturers are measuring their value.
  • How digitization and automation are changing manufacturing jobs and preparations manufacturers can make for future workforce needs.
  • Challenges that could affect stakeholders' success.

Read “2019 Deloitte and MAPI Smart Factory Study: Capturing value through the digital journey” on Deloitte Insights

About the study

Deloitte and the Manufacturer’s Alliance for Productivity and Innovation (MAPI) launched a study to determine how manufacturers are pursuing smart factory initiatives to drive business impact. Among the key findings:  

  • Every manufacturer—whether already “running smart” or yet to invest in smart factory technologies—can harvest business value from smart factory initiatives.
  • Smart factory initiatives typically accelerate business value creation. Companies report on average 10–12 percent gains in areas such as manufacturing output, factory utilization, and labor productivity after they invested in smart factory initiatives.
  • There is a direct and established connection—primarily through investment and use cases—between smart factory initiatives and the business value realized.
  • While there are risks, primarily operational and financial, they are generally outweighed by the smart factory’s value contribution.
  • An identified cohort—we call it Trailblazers—is outperforming with smart factory initiatives.

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