The Industrie 4.0 initiative is already ten years old. A platform has been established, standards have been jointly defined and successfully tested. Pilot projects abounded, and numerous approaches are already productive, albeit almost exclusively in the area of production, maintenance and logistics. The fact that no further progress has been made is primarily because SMEs are not on board. In practical terms, the needs of SMEs have not been considered.

For years, there has been talk of the digital transformation of industry. What this means for manufacturing companies, what they will use to generate their sales in the future and how they will get there is rarely discussed. At present, there are indications that the roles of those involved will change first and foremost. Large-scale industry may lose its leading role, while small and medium-sized enterprises gain in importance.