Industry 4.0 has made considerable inroads into America with more than 36,500 food and beverage processors. Machine-to-machine (M2M) communication, big data and machine learning are rapidly being adopted to increase profitability in an industry long characterized by its low margins. Industry 4.0 is improving efficiencies up and down the enterprise, from the enabling of predictive maintenance programs and supply chain monitoring, to the generating of traceability data for government compliance. Data collected from smart sensors on the plant floor is being analyzed for purposes as diverse as taste consistency, logistics management, predicting product shelf-life, packaging accuracy and employee safety.
While the food and beverage (F&B) industry has lagged behind automakers and energy producers in embracing Industry 4.0, no other industry category could benefit more from it. New digital technologies are now helping the F&B industry respond with agility to changing consumer demands and emerging opportunities. Network technologies are also keeping the industry compliant with stringent government regulations for food safety, traceability, nutrition and sustainability. In addition, it allows companies to gain a competitive advantage by leveraging operational intelligence in decision making that increases productivity and lowers operating costs.