The progressive nature of humankind is due to its evolutionary process. Those who survived were able to live to tell the next generation.
So, does the industrial machinery world. With every decade, technologists or engineers are eager to jump on to the next stage of the evolutionary process.
The end of the 18th century witnessed the beginning of the first mechanical weaving loom. The beginning of the 20th century witnessed the mass production of the first assembly line.
As the journey continues, it is speculated, from 2030 onwards, Industry 5.0, a complete digital ecosystem to digitalize the manufacturing process will take off.
The industrial evolution themes and features are as below:-
| Industry 1.0 | Mechanical production | Mechanical production is powered by water and steam power. |
| Industry 2.0 | Mass production | Introduction of assembly lines and use of electrical energy. Introduction of telegraphy in 1840 and telephony in 1880. Ford used ‘Taylorism’ to implement the car assembly line. |
| Industry 3.0 | Application of IT | Electronics usage, IT, and industrial robotics to improve automation of production. First micro-computer in 1971. Apple was founded in 1976. |
| Industry 4.0 | Cyber-physical production systems | Digital supply chain. Digital products, services, and new business models.Autonomous machines and virtual environments. |
| Industry 5.0 | Complete digital ecosystem | Virtual customer interface and virtualized processes.Flexible, virtual, and integrated value chain networks. Completely connected ecosystems. |
Industry 2.0 saw the growth of Taylorism. It was named after the U.S. industrial engineer Fredrick Winslow Taylor. The fundamental principles of large-scale manufacturing were laid down through assembly-line factories.
In the 1970s, the growth of Industry 3.0 was witnessed. In 1969, Modicon 084, the first programmable logic control (PLC) system was developed. In 1999, the RFID (Radio-frequency identification technology) system came into use. It was the early form of CPS (Cyber-Physical System).
As we get to see the glimpse of the industrial revolution, what do you think can it be for Industry 6.0? Can it be interlinked with sustainable environmental causes?
Source:- Deloitte, PwC, Statista (In-depth: Industry 4.0 2019).