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8 SMT Magazine • November 2015 by Stephen Las marias I-connecT007 eDITor'S NoTe The New Industrial era coLuMN We are entering a new industrial era, where new forces created by the proliferation of data, robotics, technology, and artificial intelligence are changing the dynamics, risks, and success factors for global manufacturing companies. To be successful in this new environment, manu- facturers, now more than ever, should be con- sidering a paradigm shift, focusing more on R&D, integrating new technologies, and pursu- ing collaborative business models. In its 2014 Global Manufacturing Outlook report, KPMG noted numerous strategies and tactics that global manufacturing companies can deploy to capitalize on new market oppor- tunities and stay ahead of their competition. These include predictive analytics, new OEM/ supplier collaborative innovation models, tech- nology platforms that support real-time busi- ness intelligence, and resilient and transparent supply chains that create virtual, vertically inte- grated manufacturing networks. Enabling these strategies are key transfor- mative technologies such as big data, analyt- ics, and the Internet of Things (IoT). IoT can be classified into two categories: Consumer and Industrial. In the first category, imagine your- self going home from work. As you reach the curb in front of your home, your car will send a signal to your garage door to open. As you en- ter your home, your network will detect your presence and immediately turn on specific ap- pliances, such as lights, the TV or stereo, air- conditioning unit, or whatever it is that you have programmed it to previously. That's just a simple example of how the consumer IoT can function. On the other hand, the industrial IoT— which is more closely related to our magazine coverage—describes an integrated system of sys- tems where sensors and actuators provide spe- cific data such as measurements, timing, and equipment status, to name a few, all connected and visible throughout the enterprise. In this scenario, we'll see the convergence of opera- tions technology (OT) in the factory floor with information technology (IT) in the enterprise,