Ten years of Industry 4.0

It’s been a decade since we officially welcomed you to the company. But that was just a formality, as you had already been an idea for a long time. We had a vision of smart factories with machines that are connected and communicate with each other — and people at the center of it all, orchestrating production. In 2011, we finally gave you an official name: Industry 4.0 — the fourth industrial revolution. In giving you this name, we also called upon industry, science, and politics to lay out a path for you. A path toward the factory of the future — one in which people and machines work together as the best kind of team, manufacturing products in a way that is transparent, efficient, and conserves resources. A factory where the only things that are static and fixed will be the floors, walls, and ceilings; everything else will be variable and flexible.

You have not remained merely a vision of the future, but have become a global market worth billions. German companies alone invest more than two billion euros in you each year. And that figure is rising rapidly.

And what about the two of us? We have developed into a single unit, an inseparable team. People and machines have become colleagues. Together, we have written a success story that is still going today — and there are still many more chapters to go.

A smart factory with machines that are connected, communicate with each other, and organize themselves — with people at the center of it all, orchestrating more efficient, more flexible, and more customized production. Originally called “cyber-physical production systems,” this idea receives a catchier name in 2011: “Industrie 4.0” (Industry 4.0). With the official go-ahead given for the German government’s pioneering project, the German term quickly takes hold around the world.

From concept to development: chaired by Siegfried Dais, former deputy chairman of the board of management of Robert Bosch GmbH, and Prof. Henning Kagermann, president of acatech, the Industry 4.0 working group draws up initial recommendations for implementing a successful path into the fourth industrial age. They send their recommendations to the German federal government in October 2012. Dais comments: “During the course of our work together it has become apparent that Germany possesses all the necessary competencies in the fields of manufacturing technology and mechanical engineering to continue to enjoy global success in tomorrow’s world of the Internet of Things and Services.”

Bosch pools its connected manufacturing expertise in its company-wide “Connected Industry” innovation cluster. This brings the company a step closer to becoming the leading user and leading supplier in connected manufacturing. Bosch launches an education offensive as well: associates without a degree are to be offered training for IT and commercial jobs that usually require an academic degree. The aim is to respond to the growing demand for software expertise and prepare its workforce for Industry 4.0 jobs. The first group to participate in the program is made up of roughly 80 skilled workers.

Old machine, rapid connectivity, new benefits. This is the reasoning behind Bosch’s decision to take a closer look at its company founder’s 130-year-old lathe. Sensors and software combined with IoT-enabled industrial control catapult the lathe from 1887 into the Industry 4.0 era. This is more than just a symbolic action: according to studies in 2016, tens of millions of machines are still being assembled in plants worldwide without being enabled for Industry 4.0.

With the launch of its own cloud for internet-based services, Bosch becomes a full-service provider for connectivity and the internet of things. In the Bosch IoT Cloud, the company runs various applications for its connected mobility, connected industries, and connected buildings businesses.

Bosch creates a new operating unit for connected industry. This brings together all its Industry 4.0 activities, especially concerning software and services. It also ensures that the company has the best possible team for the job: customers wanting to connect the entire value stream can now consult the new unit for support. The unit launches with 500 associates in Germany, Hungary, and China.

Developed by Bosch and the Chamber of Industry and Commerce, the first Germany-wide vocational training program geared to the Industry 4.0 skill set is launched. The training program is now also offered in other countries, such as China. That same year, Bosch debuts a new software solution: CtrlX AUTOMATION — ctrl being short for ’control.“ The solution makes systems and machines as accommodating as a smartphone, with functions that can be customized and updated — much the way a smartphone is via apps.

For the second time, the World Economic Forum has honored a Bosch plant as an Industry 4.0 lighthouse project. In Suzhou, China, Bosch demonstrates how digitalized manufacturing and logistics can increase efficiency and quality in equal measure. Bosch already added its plant in Wuxi, China, to the list of shining examples back in 2018. There, the World Economic Forum highlighted the capability of connected solutions for troubleshooting and predictive maintenance as exemplary for a factory of the future.

Since launching Industry 4.0 ten years ago, Bosch has generated more than four billion euros in sales with its portfolio in this area. In 2020 alone, the company recorded sales of more than 700 million euros with connected solutions for manufacturing and logistics. Bosch is not only a leading supplier, but also a leading user: Bosch plants now count more than 120,000 machines and over 250,000 devices that feature connectivity, such as integrated camera systems and robots. Bosch projects indicate that connected solutions increase productivity by as much as 25 percent.