Manufacturing-X fuels the pioneering spirit at the Hannover Messe

By Bhalchandra Chorghade, Editor, CNCTimes.com

Real added value comes from exchanges and networking. At the Hannover Messe everything was about interlocking the two biggest screws of the future: sustainability and digitalization. The data room initiative Manufacturing-X was a central topic here.

Hannover Messe 2023 clearly demonstrated that our present times have no shortage of challenges that need to be tackled to secure the future of Germany as an industrial location. The topics of sustainability and digitalization, supply chains and energy supply were a driving force for the 130,000 visitors and over 4,000 exhibitors from April 17 to 21, 2023. However, the world's leading trade show for industry proved one thing above all else: there are solutions. Therefore, at the closing press conference, Chairman of the Managing Board Deutsche Messe AG, Dr. Jochen Köckler, emphasized the pioneering spirit that was palpable at the trade fair.

SCHUNK – Plattform Industrie 4.0

Federal Ministry and industry in close exchange at the Hannover Messe. (f.l.t.r.) Peter Körte (Siemens), Prof. Dr. Siegfried Russwurm (BDI), Claudia Nemat (Deutsche Telekom), Dr. Robert Habeck (Federal Minister BMWK), Henrik A. Schunk (SCHUNK), Nina Stock (BMWK), Ernst Stoeckl-Pukall (BMWK)

Independent data room

Establishing a data room that will network small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) across industries, and therefore increases their competitiveness and innovation, is driven by the initiative Manufacturing-X. Henrik A. Schunk, Chairman of the Board of SCHUNK SE & Co. KG assumes an active role now. At this year’s Hannover Messe, he took over the Chairmanship of the steering committee for the Industry 4.0 platform for the next two years. What makes this new European data space special is that, unlike previous platforms, it is being set up federally and grassroots democratically by many companies, as Henrik A. Schunk explained at the Hannover Messe. Here, participating companies will be able to share their data across the entire manufacturing and supply chain without losing control over their data. Start-ups, SMEs and corporations can draw equally from this shared data pool to avoid supply chain shortages or reduce energy consumption in production, for example. The overarching goal: a resilient, sustainable and competitive industrial environment.

Forging ahead with a pioneering spirit

The question of what contribution digital ecosystems can make to resilience and sustainability was also addressed by leading minds from industry, politics and business at the Leaders' Dialogue at the trade show. Henrik A. Schunk showed the way to developing the data ecosystem in the panel "Connecting industrial value-chains for competitiveness and sustainability." He explained, "Manufacturing-X is a change project. We need a cultural change and a new pioneering spirit. There must be a willingness on the part of the company's management and a commitment to actively sharing data beyond the company's own four walls. Only then can value-added digital services and data ecosystems truly emerge."

SCHUNK – Plattform Industrie 4.0

At the start of the Hannover Messe, Henrik A. Schunk took over the Chairmanship of the steering committee for the Industry 4.0 platform from his predecessor Dr. Frank Possel-Dölken. From left to right: Markus Hess (BMWK), Dr. Frank Possel-Dölken (Phoenix Contact), Henrik A. Schunk (SCHUNK) (Bild: Plattform Industrie 4.0)

https://schunk.com/us/en/news/manufacturing-x-fuels-the-pioneering-spirit-at-the-hannover-messe/16640

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