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24 PCB007 MAGAZINE I NOVEMBER 2023 manufacturing has le many plant managers wondering where and how to start the process of implementation. e reality is that imple- mentation of a Smart factory is not a one-size- fits-all approach, and companies need to adapt their existing systems, process, and infrastruc- tures to embrace this transformation gradually. In the PCB manufacturing plant, there is a profusion of design and production data that is held in many places and in many different formats. ere is an opportunity to incorpo- rate this information with data gathered in real time from manufacturing processes to provide intelligent analysis, derived actions, and con- Feature Article by Andrew Kelley XACTPCB LTD. While previous industrial revolutions have introduced factories, mass production, and computer-controlled systems, the advent of Industry 4.0 and the concept of the Smart fac- tory have ushered in a new era in PCB man- ufacturing. For the PCB industry it is a very ambitious and aspirational objective to evolve from disconnected processes to an integrated system with automated data capture, real-time data analysis, process visualization, autono- mous control, and self-correcting processes. Industry experts claim that those who fail to engage will rapidly fall behind, however, the paradigm shi that this revolution brings to Registration: From Raw Data to Intelligent Manufacturing