04/02/2022
Industry 4.0 spurs globalization
Hands holding a tablet in front of an industrial robot.
The growth of digitization has had a great impact on the global business landscape. Sandvik talked to Industry 4.0 expert Philipp Ramin to find out what’s in store for the future.
Industry 4.0, or the fourth industrial revolution, is not, as many perceive, an initiative to secure the survival of Western manufacturing units in the face of low-wage competition from China and developing countries. It is, instead, a move towards next-generation production methods that will lead to further globalization, especially for small and medium-sized companies.
So says Philipp Ramin, co-founder and CEO of the consulting and training company Innovationszentrum für Industrie 4.0, based in Regensburg, Germany. “In all honesty, it may have started to improve competitiveness, but Industry 4.0 will actually strengthen ties between companies all over the world,” he says. “That’s a consequence of the concept.”