Bosch sees the future of factories in connectivity

Crises reveal weaknesses. The coronavirus pandemic has highlighted the value of connected manufacturing and logistics. The Internet of Things (IoT) helps industrial companies react to disruptions more flexibly than before, as the utilization and status of each individual machine can be tracked in real time and transparency exists throughout the supply chain. “Especially in exceptional times, such as the current crisis, connectivity makes companies less vulnerable and helps them maintain a balance,” says Rolf Najork, member of the Bosch Board of Management responsible for the Industrial Technology business area. For example, where the risk of infection makes physical proximity a challenge, shift changes can be handled digitally. Digitalization enables remote monitoring and maintenance of systems and machines without the need for an on-site technician. Intelligent software can track products and deliveries and ensure replenishment from anywhere. All of this is made possible by Industry 4.0. Connected solutions will help make manufacturing and logistics simpler, more efficient, more flexible, and also more robust. Bosch is an IoT pioneer. The company began incorporating connectivity into manufacturing and logistics in 2012, both in its own plants and those of its customers. This is paying off: in 2019, Bosch generated sales of over €750 million with connected solutions for manufacturing and logistics, a 25 percent increase over the previous year.

Industry 4.0 Increases Factory Productivity

In the factory of the future, the only things that are static and fixed are the floors, walls, and ceilings. The factory of the future is constantly reinventing itself according to needs. It is guided by the vision of a manufacturing setup that can produce thousands of different products and variants, down to a single batch size, without the need for costly modifications. That’s why Bosch is committed to connectivity. Projects in this area drive progress and deliver measurable benefits. With the help of Industry 4.0, it’s possible to increase productivity by up to 25 percent at individual locations. “Connectivity is essential for any company that wants to remain competitive. Industry 4.0 is a historic opportunity that offers enormous potential,” says Najork. “We’re not only improving factory productivity, but we’re also enabling companies to respond quickly and appropriately to changes.” Taking Bosch as an example, the transition in the automotive industry means cost pressure for its powertrain division, as well as pressure to adapt.

Precisely for this reason, the division will invest approximately €500 million in digitizing and adding connectivity to its production operations in the coming years. The expected savings will double: approximately €1 billion by 2025. And with the use of artificial intelligence, these savings are expected to increase. The focus is on AI-based solutions for predictive machine maintenance, quality assurance, and improved production processes. For example, AI is used in highly complex wafer fabs—such as Bosch’s in Reutlingen—for detailed production scheduling, saving time and costs as it guides wafers through more than 500 processing steps. This alone translates into a 5 percent higher yield per wafer, with a payback time of just three months.

From individual projects to large-scale implementation

In Germany, six out of ten industrial companies with more than 100 employees already use Industry 4.0 applications, according to a recent study by the industry association Bitkom. However, in many cases, these applications are piecemeal. The VDMA, the Association of German Machinery and Equipment Manufacturers, estimates that 80 percent of existing machinery in the country has not yet been digitalized. “There is still a lot to be done in manufacturing, and many points we can tweak and adjust. Our task now is to make Industry 4.0 the norm in all parts of the industrial sector,” says Najork. For companies, the biggest obstacle to implementing Industry 4.0 is the large sums of capital it requires (Bitkom, 2020). In fact, machinery can also be retrofitted with information technology and sensor systems. Doing so opens the door to the Industrial Internet of Things. The Bosch Rexroth plant in Erbach, Germany, shows how even minor investments in large-scale production lines can be profitable: it spent a total of €25,000 equipping these lines with sensors and light barriers and now saves around €200,000 annually.

Balancing economic and ecological factors through connected solutions

As a leading IoT company, Bosch has all the core competencies needed to shape Industry 4.0. Its portfolio includes software packages for maintenance, monitoring, and logistics, robotics systems for manufacturing and transportation, retrofit solutions for existing machinery, and assistance systems for machine operators. Now, Bosch is introducing a software-based, 5G-enabled control technology that is open to third-party applications. ctrlX Automation marks the end of siloed factory solutions. With more than 30 data protocols, the new Bosch Rexroth automation platform will be the control center of the factory of the future. With the enhanced Nexeed Industrial Application System, Bosch Connected Industry offers more than just an app store for manufacturing and logistics. The various software applications can be ordered, used, and combined as needed. All machine data is available in a clear, standardized format, ensuring greater transparency and efficiency in the factory. An excellent example of how to harmonize economic and ecological considerations is the Bosch Energy Platform. Once a machine is connected to it, its energy consumption can be tracked, analyzed, and controlled. The result is more economical factories that require less energy and emit less CO2. Connectivity will play an important role in making manufacturing climate-neutral.