Industrialisation lessons from Deutschland

… As Namibia is urged to embrace Industry 4.0

By Hilary Mare
DIGITALISATION collapses borders and time zones, compressing dis­tance and bringing different parties closer to one another.
With new collaboration tools, manufac­turing executives can digitally connect de­signers, engineers, researchers and supply chain partners, and integrate these new net­works into the products being developed on the factory floor.
Suddenly, manufacturers can access a wider array of specialist resources from across the globe, creating platforms for en­hanced collaboration, communication and real-time decision-making, and Namibia should not be exempted from this process.
In a visit to the cities of Berlin and Mu­nich last week, Confidente established that the digitalization agenda is gaining mo­mentum and that Namibia can borrow a leaf or two from what the Germans have termed Industry 4.0.
Industry 4.0 is derived from the concept of the fourth industrial revolution, which seeks to move from a reliance on current production methods, by embracing new concepts in the field of data analytics, the internet of things and the full automation of industries, in the application of value-ad­dition.
Dr Tilo Klinner, Director of Foreign Trade, Investment Promotion and Technol­ogy Policy in the German Federal Foreign Office, said that countries which were still developing, such as Namibia, needed to prepare for this revolution.
“What I can say is that Industry 4.0 is now inevitable and already in full imple­mentation, and hence the time has come for nations such as Namibia to consider going digital, as the days of mass production are increasingly becoming numbered,” he said.
With Namibia keen on an industrialisa­tion agenda, through its ‘Growth at Home’ initiative and the stated key provisions of its Fifth National Development Plan (NDP5), digitalisation presents numerous oppor­tunities to enrich the envisaged processes with new data insights, in order to pool human and artificial intelligence (AI) re­sources, and evolve Namibia’s classic value chains into more collaborative and digitised networks of specialists.
With the right mix of strategy, culture and technology, manufacturing organisations can shift from their outdated legacy pro­cesses, towards more flexible and digitalised platforms, thereby enhancing their compet­itiveness and positioning themselves for an unpredictable future.
While in Germany, Confidente also at­tended presentations delivered by Ernst Stockl-Pukall and Alexender Tettenborn, who head up Division IV A 5, responsible for digitalization and industry 4.0, and Di­vision IV B 4, responsible for development of digital technologies, respectively, in Ger­many’s Ministry of Economic Affairs and Energy.
They shared why digitalization is critical and how it is designed to provide maximum efficiencies over the next few years.
“We are trying to implement this agenda in phases, but we also acknowledge that this agenda will seek legislative desire and will­ingness from governing bodies, as well as partnership between the public and private sector. The rapid development of broad­band technology to quicken implementa­tion is also essential to this goal,” Tetten­born said, while urging developing nations to drive the upward trajectory of broadband technology.
While we certainly can’t predict the fu­ture direction of manufacturing industries in Namibia, one thing we can be sure of is that digitalisation will play an essential role. By adopting greater levels of digitalization in any value-addition drive, manufacturers position themselves to capitalise on emerg­ing trends for the coming decade, including rapid prototyping, crowdsourcing, aug­mented reality, increased robotics and ar­tificial intelligence and image-recognising cameras.
From the lessons provided for by big co­operates in the German market, including from the BMW Group, whose headquar­ters Confidente visited in Germany, Namib­ia can begin to understand that traditional manufacturing business models are coming under increasing threat, and the pressure to digitise is intensifying.
Today’s leading manufacturers are taking bold steps to reshape their operations, re­move the processes hindering transforma­tion and change their company cultures.
For these fast-moving manufacturers, the ability to access the technology and skills needed is being facilitated by digitalisation, which is creating exciting new opportuni­ties in the production and distribution of goods.
In the smart factory vision, almost every piece of equipment and tooling is fitted with sensors that are continually piping in­formation into a nerve-centre – producing the insights that inform resource allocation, while warning of potential machine down­time and quickly revealing any bottle­necks in factory processes.
Interestingly and imperatively, both the Confederation of German employers Association (BDA), as well as the Federation of Ger­man Trade Unions (DGB) agree that digitalization is inevitable and should be embraced. Although the BDA doesn’t think that labour challenges will en­sue, as widely reported, the DGB recommends that the process be shaped in a way that will bring about a smooth transition and implementation of the digitalization agenda. Questions regarding the skills gap that could be created have been addressed by the German tripartite employment sys­tem, in which apprenticeship programs have been able to address skills gaps from time memorial, thereby providing better chances to deal with the problems that may arise in the labour market; another process that Namibia can borrow from.
But manufacturing technology isn’t just about new ways of producing goods and materials. We’re starting to see sensors and data being used in interesting and inno­vative ways, even in the context of tradi­tional manufacturing. For example, some manufacturers are using sensors on smart tools, to help workers drill holes with per­fect precision. Tools detect the exact torque required to tighten bolts correctly, for in­stance, among other tasks. All of this helps to elevate manufacturing excellence to new heights.
Earlier this week, Finance Minister Calle Schlettwein noted that the way forward for growth depends on manufacturing, while Information and Communication Tech­nology (ICT) Minister, Tjekero Tweya, said that Namibians should embrace the ICT sector, in order to boost economic develop­ment.