Can Industry 4.0 remedy staff shortages?

Good staff is always hard to find. But in the current labor market we are happy if we have people at all. This is noticeable in the workplace. The rate of staff turnover is high and the motivation low. Errors due to carelessness are increasing. Quality problems take up time. Training budgets seem to evaporate and certified people are gone before you have earned the course back. Can you solve this with automation?

Short answer: No

Automation does not solve everything

Helaas zijn niet alle problemen weg te automatiseren (maar we helpen het je graag proberen 😉 ). Hoe je de processen ook inricht, om de mens kun je niet heen. Al bedek je een machine met instructies en waarschuwingsstickers, er is altijd iemand te vinden die hem verkeerd bedient. Dit speelt ook als het om automatisering gaat. Zelfs de allerbeste systemen kunnen stuk.

Do we throw the towel into the ring or do we opt for ambition?

With that in mind, you can throw in the towel and give up. As entrepreneurs, we prefer to choose a more ambitious solution. Automated systems are there to register and analyze. Industry 4.0 gives you the tools to really do something with that data. For example, to respond smartly to problems that the tight labor market entails.

Do we throw the towel into the ring or do we opt for ambition?

With that in mind, you can throw in the towel and give up. As entrepreneurs, we prefer to choose a more ambitious solution. Automated systems are there to register and analyze. Industry 4.0 gives you the tools to really do something with that data. For example, to respond smartly to problems that the tight labor market entails.

Industry 4.0 translates problems into solutions by taking one step further with existing resources as much as possible.

Check and verify or Manage?

There are risks involved. Man has forgotten the biggest pitfall. No one wants to be notified of his mistakes; not at all by a computer. Constant checking and warning is therefore unwise. Adopting is better. You do not use the information to report what goes wrong, but to find out the underlying cause and to come up with a solution.

KPIs are relocating the problem

Take an analysis, for example, which shows that with the same output, one shift consumes more raw material than another. Whoever controls can set a KPI and demand that the consumption should be equal. Maximum x units per run. With a little pressure, that KPI (alt least on paper) is achieved. If you analyze the figures after a few months, it is quite likely that you will discover a new problem elsewhere

KPIs are relocating the problem

Take an analysis, for example, which shows that with the same output, one shift consumes more raw material than another. Whoever controls can set a KPI and demand that the consumption should be equal. Maximum x units per run. With a little pressure, that KPI (alt least on paper) is achieved. If you analyze the figures after a few months, it is quite likely that you will discover a new problem elsewhere

Everyone has already started using Industry 4.0, but not everyone is aware of this yet. A missed opportunity. Without an underlying plan, investments do not deliver the maximum.

Search for causes

If you are going to manage, you use the figures as a starting point. You see where a problem lies and you can now find out the cause. Is the higher consumption due to ignorance? Is that due to people who need more instruction? Is the expertise among the teams evenly distributed? Do they work in the same way? Or does one shift place more stock on the workplaces that the other then consumes in the next shift? Do all team leaders work with the same dimensions? Does one number use buckets and the other kilos (to name just a cross street)? Sometimes apparently large differences have small causes. It is certain that every problem requires its own solution.

Think in solutions, not in dashboards

Industry 4.0 promises to unlock business data with analysis software. You not only register, but you can also do something with it. Checking is obvious. But if you take your digital dashboard too seriously, you create a gap between the office and the shop floor. Therefore use analysis software as a starting point. Use it to discover problems and determine underlying causes. Then you can come up with real solutions; even for an acute staff shortage.

Think in solutions, not in dashboards

Industry 4.0 promises to unlock business data with analysis software. You not only register, but you can also do something with it. Checking is obvious. But if you take your digital dashboard too seriously, you create a gap between the office and the shop floor. Therefore use analysis software as a starting point. Use it to discover problems and determine underlying causes. Then you can come up with real solutions; even for an acute staff shortage.

Brainstorming, thinking out of the box and translation to reallife practice

More in four months!

The first EasyStep2 Customer Day was a great success. We agreed with the attendees to meet again in four months and to see how we translated the inspiration into practice. Do you want to join us and think along?

Contact us and we'll reserve a spot.