Mid-sized companies in Virtual Factories
A strategy for growth?
Lai Xu, Paul de Vrieze, Go Muan Sang, Bournemouth University
In Short
Industry 4.0 manufacturing related processes have shifted from conventional processes within one organization to collaborative processes across different factories and enterprises. Virtual factories as a foundational concept to future manufacturing allow the flexible amalgamation of manufacturing resources in multiple organisations using emerging technologies such as Internet of Things (IoT), sensors, etc. The article provides relevant concepts as well as the challenges and opportunities of virtual factories for Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs).
Virtual factories as a foundational concept to future manufacturing allow the flexible amalgamation of manufacturing resources in multiple organisations. Industry 4.0 initiatives introduced by Germany provide the realization of how a future factory will transform enterprise businesses using cloud, Internet of Things, Cyber Physical Systems, Virtual Reality, big data, and the opportunities and challenges that will pose enterprises including SMEs. The article first reviews relevant concepts and relationships among the concepts. The challenges and opportunities for SMEs are discussed for participating in virtual factories.