Future of Manufacturing

In order to remain competitive, companies need to continually reduce costs and the time it takes to manufacture increasingly complex products. Experts are therefore convinced that the merging of virtual planning activities and physical production processes will play an important role in the future. Software developments are at the beginning of a growing number of the innovations in manufacturing processes. Global co-creation activities, such as those employed for the development of Local Motors' Rally Fighter, are just one example. In the intelligent factories of the future, networked groups of machines will organize themselves, supply chains will automatically coordinate their activities, and semifinished products will supply machines with the data they need to transform these products into items that are ready for sale. As a result, factories will increasingly be able to control and optimize their production processes. Industry 4.0 will radically change the world of products. "Over the next 20 years we will see a huge increase in product diversity and individualization," says car developer John B. Rogers Jr.

Maximizing Efficiency

Global demand for electricity is forecast to rise by two thirds between now and 2030. Despite the boom in renewable energies, conventional power plants will continue to cover a substantial share of the world's energy needs. However, these power stations can be modernized to make them much more efficient and environmentally friendly than they are today. For example, Siemens has upgraded a power plant in Russia to increase its efficiency from 38 percent to 55 percent, leading to huge reductions in fuel consumption and CO2 emissions. Similar gains can be achieved in the automotive industry through the intelligent control of production lines, for example. Rising prices for raw materials are forcing companies to use resources as efficiently as possible. As a result, Siemens has launched several hundred material optimization projects throughout the company. Expensive raw materials can often be replaced with resources that cost less but are equivalent in other respects. Moreover, biopolymers made from renewable raw materials might serve as environmentally friendly alternatives to conventional plastics in the future.

Where Mobility Is Going

The number of motor vehicles on the world's roads has increased fourfold over the past 40 years and is expected to double again by 2050. Siemens researchers are therefore looking for ways to manage this increased mobility as sustainably as possible. A good example of this is provided by the city of Istanbul, with its millions of inhabitants. The city plans to build a new bridge across the Bosporus in order to cut driving times from about one hour to six minutes. Siemens will supply the associated traffic control systems. Innovations such as eTicketing will make it easier for passengers to use various transportation systems, and the exchange of information about road and driving conditions between individual road users will make transportation faster and more environmentally compatible. In order to make freight traffic more efficient, Siemens researchers have also developed a solution known as the urban consolidation center. These centers are warehouses where all the goods destined for the retailers in a city are first consolidated and then shipped out according to district or even individual streets. Siemens researchers are also involved in projects for the shipping industry. In Norway, for example, they have developed the technology for the world's first all-electric car ferry, which emits no CO2.

Reference Number: IN 2013.04.3e