Future Factory

Participation in the Hannover Messe allowed us to investigate in details the emerging technological trends of the industry and the main vectors of its development. It could be perceived that the whole sphere of production is gradually but rapidly drifting from its accustomed methods and arrangements towards digitalization and automatization of processes and operations. The one particular sector that captured my attention was Logistics and Warehousing - tremendous alterations and developments have occured in this sector, comparing to the past decades and preceding technologies applied. Robots and automated machines have been widely utilized in the sphere of Logistics and Warehousing, and year by year their efficiency increases significantly, they require less human involvement and are capable of performing more complex operations, such as precise and accurate sorting and allocation of goods. Considering the concept of the Future Factory in terms of Supply Chain and Warehousing arrangements, we might predict even more perceptible and dramatic shift towards automatization and development of robotics in Logistics. Not only do the companies intend to utilize more robotics, but they also strive to establish the consistent and efficient Supply Chain that would connect separate automated links and work as the powerful, intelligent organism, capable of performing any type of required activities and operations, regardless of their complexity and scale.  It is rather challenging to foretell if the human involvement in the Supply Chain of the Future Factory is going to vanish completely or whether it is just going to decrease dramatically but still remain as one of the key elements of the whole chain. Though Hannover Messe allowed us to witness the development of the industry and its emerging tendencies, we can hardly define its final point and results.

Artemii Polishchuk