by Michele Magistretti
R&D and Technology Development Manager

The 4.0 revolution in Italy, closely linked to the IoT world of which I recently published an article, although initially slow, has begun and is producing the first results. It is perhaps the most important ingredient of growth that has characterized the Italian manufacturing market, the engine of the Italian economy, in particular the machinery and equipment production sector. Indeed, there are many companies that have invested in the renewal of plants and equipment, also thanks to the tax incentives that have been allocated recently.
Precisely the investments in machinery and equipment, up by about 14%, were the key factor in increasing the gross domestic product of the second quarter, which represents a historical maximum since the second quarter of 2008, i.e. the eve of the crisis.

Industry 4.0, which derives from the integration between mechanics and digital technology, i.e. the application of the world of connectivity, sensors and, in general, the IoT applied to the industrial manufacturing context, represents a huge opportunity for company growth and reorganization.
The fact that many of the industries are now aware investing in Industry 4.0 is a way to ensure competitiveness and face an increasingly competitive and constantly evolving market is shown by the 30% progress in just one year, represented by industrial internet of things, analytics, advanced automation, additive manufacturing and other applications. The first six months of 2018 confirm the trend, which sees for the domestic market an increase in the order of 10-12%, which already based on double-digit growth last year.
The use of modern machines interconnected with management systems and sensors is the fundamental prerequisite for making companies competitive, but mainly because it is the means to acquire data, through which to achieve control of production processes. By mastering and knowing their own production process, companies are able to optimize, reduce waste and defects and make them more efficient.
Many of the data, collected during the production process and not only, are registered and coupled to the product and will follow it until delivery to the customer. Other data are collected to monitor processes, plan maintenance and make predictive maintenance.
The availability of data is the building-block on which much more needs to be built, digitizing various aspects of the entire development and production chain, for example logistics.
Among the most implemented logistics changes there is the product tracking through barcode or RID tag, the use of sensors that track the movement of the product and systems, which can thus dialogue in real time with the logistic system to perform displacement checks, minimizing errors and delays.
The lighting, which offers an opportunity for optimization and efficiency, holds a primary role in the restructuring of production processes, the organization of components, products, production cycles and resources.
Indeed, interconnected lighting devices with PIR motion sensors and light sensors, allow not only to streamline and reduce consumption, but can also provide useful information on the real use of spaces, schedules and lighting conditions, offering the possibility of customization, dynamic scenarios and more comfort.