Indusytry 4.0

Industry 4.0

There have been 4 stages of industrial revolution thus far, starting from Industry 1.0 up to Industry 4.0 which is a name given to the current trend of automation and data exchange in manufacturing technologies. These technologies include; cyber-physical systems, the Internet of things, cloud computing and cognitive computing.

(Upload.wikimedia.org, 2018)

The History of the Industry

Industry 1.0: Refers to the first industrial revolution and discovery of steam power within manufacturing. It was the first breakthrough in increasing human productivity and introduction to mass production of goods.

Industry 2.0: The seconds industrial revolution took place in the 19th century with the discovery of electricity and assembly line production, which introduced mass production. Henry Ford's innovation lead to the mass production of vehicles, and  many other products which aided in improving the quality of human life as well as reducing human labour and increasing human productivity.

Industry 3.0: The third industrial revolution began in 20th century, and allowed partial automation using memory-programmable controls and computers. This means that machines aid in the production process and remove human labour and create an autonomous production line.

Industry 4.0: The fourth industrial revolution is currently taking place and aims to revolutionise production through current production systems that are already using computer technology and expand these within a network connection which will allow communication between production facilities and then upload this data about each facility to the main server which can then be viewed by necessary parties, thus creating smart factories communicating between each other.

Industry 1.0 - 4.0 Explained

(What is Industry 4.0?, 2018)

What does this mean for artists?

Industry 4.0 has opened the doors to many opportunities however at the same time puts 47% of all jobs in the US at risk of termination,  which means given the current circumstances and advancements creative thinking is crucial for finding new ways to deliver value to an employer.

(Partnershipmovement.org, 2018)

As you can see in the above image, with the new industrial revolution taking place already employers requirements are changing exponentially with the advancement in technologies when compared to the past. As an artist you will need to think outside of the box, put nicely in an article from the world economic forum "The nature of work is changing, and the function of having a job is going to be radically different in the near future."(World Economic Forum, 2018). As a result of the fast pace advancements in technologies there is a lack of understanding of these technologies and their capabilities and place within our society thus creating fear and uncertainty amongst the masses. As we are currently evolving into the fourth industrial revolution, it is important that we are able to communicate our ideas and science across to multiple target audiences, put nicely from the same article; "Being prepared to deal with the controversial technologies developed now is the only way to make sure we can fully engage in the conversations that shape the future of our societies." In short, we need to build peoples trust within technology, already we are seeing Virtual Reality and Augmented reality make its appearances in house holds and are now more widely accepted by consumers despite the technology being around for years.

Tesla Giga Factory

Industry 4.0 is already underway with smart automous factories already in the making, Tesla's Giga factories are emerging and currently expected to "be the biggest building in the world – and entirely powered by renewable energy sources. Designed to be a net zero energy factory upon completion, the facility will be primarily powered by solar, and installation is already underway."(Tesla.com, 2018) There are currently two giga factories being created. And already production has begun inside them.