In addition to advances in control systems and robotics, Industry 4.0 primarily foresees the emergence of new business models: Networked machines and devices not only enable greater efficiency in production, but also allow the development of new 'smart' products and services, which in turn generate additional revenue. At least in theory.

In practice, however, many companies are still struggling with implementation. What services could their own company actually develop? How can they create added value for customers? And how do they then market, provide and maintain them? Answering these questions is often difficult. Sometimes there is a lack of the necessary IT expertise or corresponding resources, sometimes there is a lack of experience in dealing with digital technology or 'Industry 4.0-compliant' approaches to research and development. Sometimes, however, there is simply a lack of time and space to experiment.

What will it be like to work as a networked employee of the future? Equipped with wearables such as augmented reality glasses and data gloves, visitors can try it out at the Innovation Center.

© Accenture

In order to overcome precisely such hurdles, the consulting firm Accenture has opened the 'Industrial Internet of Things Innovation Center' in Garching near Munich in close cooperation with partners - a kind of learning workshop for industrial companies looking for new impetus on the path to Industry 4.0. Here, those responsible for digitalization can not only get initial answers to their questions, but also develop their own ideas, launch their first projects and even develop early prototypes of smart products or digital services.

The basic idea behind this: Developing new digital offerings is easier if learners can leave their familiar environment, come together with like-minded people and experiment directly with different solutions. This is hands-on innovation, where new ideas are not developed on the drawing board, but collaboratively in an inspiring working environment.

However, because the reference to one's own experience, working environment and expertise should be maintained at all times, the Garching Center also aims to achieve this - and combines an industrial environment and conventional offices with special workshop rooms and demonstration areas for Industry 4.0 case studies.

Inspiration through application examples

Specifically, the facility, which extends over three floors of an industrial hall in a logistics park, offers a store floor with business-relevant application examples for networked IIoT solutions in industry and a large number of office and meeting rooms. These are divided into the reception area, twelve meeting rooms, six modern offices, two design thinking rooms with lounge furniture, flipcharts and innovative work areas - spread over an area of around 2,200 m².

On the store floor, the heart of the center, visitors can experience IIoT applications in action and try them out for themselves. Application examples from Accenture and over 30 partner companies are available at ten stations, including IIoT solution providers such as Dassault Systèmes, Microsoft, PTC, SAP and Siemens as well as industrial equipment suppliers and industry-related start-ups.

The examples on show will illustrate concrete solutions on topics such as integrated hardware and software development, digital engineering and digital manufacturing, store floor optimization, networked asset management, networked employees, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and digital industrial distribution. For example, visitors can click their way through networked product lifecycle and application lifecycle software, fill a fully networked model production line with workpieces themselves using a co-bot or try their hand at complex cabling work - supported by AR/VR technologies.

The showcases provide industry managers with numerous practical suggestions for the actual creative and concept work. This not only takes place on the store floor, but is supplemented by design thinking workshops in the center's meeting and creative rooms. Here, Accenture experts lead entire client groups through workshops, planning sessions and strategy discussions. It is not unusual for clients to plan two to three days for this in order to have enough time for inspiration, initial concrete ideas and the development of feasible concepts.

Implementation of initial approaches

However, the center is not just an 'ideas factory', but also supports companies in turning initial approaches into relevant and marketable solutions. For example, visitors can hand over concepts that they have developed during a workshop to Accenture experts for further development. Within a few days, these experts then create a functional prototype, such as a software app or a hardware prototype with IIoT capabilities and software features.

For this type of solution development based on the motto 'Prototypes, not Powerpoints', the Center team relies on Accenture's Liquid Studios: flexible teams of developers who specialize in the creation of prototypes, have specific process and industry expertise and are also able to work with customers in an agile and fast manner.

If a prototype actually proves successful, the employees at the Garching facility can also provide support with further development and marketing: The IIoT Innovation Center is an integral part of Accenture's global 'Industry X.0 Innovation Network', which also offers further services relating to the industrialization of IIoT solutions, and is also linked to Accenture's other business units.

The facility is also closely networked with other local partners: The center's network includes well-known tech groups and industrial companies from the greater Munich area as well as the region's important universities and start-ups.

However, the use of all these possibilities is not a must. Some customers therefore also use the center's prototyping services 'only' to expand their own creative workshops - for example, to make the IIoT really tangible. One example: a company's managers were asked to make a small table-top drinks dispenser 'smart'. The participating decision-makers then came up with the idea of a machine that 'recognizes' users by means of a facial scan and then automatically provides their favourite drink. The necessary retrofitting of the machine with sensors and cables was carried out by the participants themselves - the necessary control software was developed simultaneously by Accenture experts in the neighboring office, supported by colleagues from other European software development centers.

It is precisely in practical experiments like these that visitors can derive the greatest additional benefit: In addition to providing concrete answers to the digitization questions they bring with them, they also provide experience in quickly developing and implementing digital ideas. In this way, a visit to the center also takes away some of the fear of the 'mammoth project' of digital transformation.

Best practices for idea development

A new study (see box) shows that companies that break new ground in innovation are also economically more successful. The result: particularly successful companies combine the proven working methods of experienced industrial companies - especially those for planning and managing development projects - with newer approaches from tech start-ups. They also open up their own research and development work to external partners in order to gain access to additional ideas and expertise, thereby accelerating the entire innovation process and achieving cost benefits in research and development.

However, the same study also shows that so far only a minority of companies - around 20% - have really mastered this connection. The vast majority still limit themselves to the continuous improvement of their existing hardware products. According to the authors of the study, this will probably no longer be enough in the future: Industrial companies urgently need to digitize not only their operations and services - but also their research and development.

Authors:
Andreas Schuler is Head of the IIoT Innovation Center at Accenture;
Matthias Wahrendorff is Head of Accenture Research in Germany.

Developing ideas like a start-up

Only 20% belong to the winning groups 'Early Innovators' and 'Value Makers'.

© Accenture

The Accenture market study 'Beyond the Product: Rewriting the Innovation Playbook' shows the extent to which the digitalization of industry is also changing research and development. According to this study, industrial companies can be divided into four groups based on their approach to innovation and innovation management:

Market Share Protectors: the largest category; around 43% of all companies surveyed belong to this group. 'Market share protectors' concentrate on the constant further development of existing products and mainly use conventional processes.

Efficient Executors: Similar to the market share protectors, this group also predominantly develops products further - although this is done to a much greater extent using structured processes. The companies in this category - 37% of the sample - are therefore comparatively efficient.

Value Makers' The first 'winner group' in the survey; 13% of the companies surveyed belong to this category. 'Value creators' not only develop product innovations, but also new services and customer experiences. To do this, the representatives of this group start with the customer (and not the product) and also rely on collaboration with ecosystem partners.

Early Innovators: The second winning group and the clear winner in the comparison. 'Early innovators' specifically search for gaps in the market and unmet customer needs and develop corresponding solutions in a targeted manner using highly standardized processes. Research and development are strategic and closely linked to business development; structured experiments and a step-by-step 'fail fast' approach are the rule.
Of all the groups mentioned, only the 'value makers' and the 'early innovators' achieve significant competitive advantages: The companies in this group recognize customer needs earlier, bring new solutions to market faster and have more successful market launches than their competitors. 350 companies worldwide were analyzed for the market study.