The pressures manufacturers face in achieving a mature IT infrastructure

The Fourth Industrial Revolution, otherwise known as Industry 4.0, is shaping the future of manufacturing. In essence, this is the digitalisation of the manufacturing sector, which has certainly been gathering momentum over the last couple of years thanks to the emergence of 5G and the realisation of the exciting potential of the Internet of Things (IoT).

Having a robust IT infrastructure strategy is critical to the successful execution of organisations digital transformation strategies and to improving efficiency, productivity and maintaining a competitive advantage. The pandemic has reinforced this and focused the attention of businesses on developing an infrastructure strategy to drive agility.

In comparison to other industries, manufacturers appear to be far more advanced in terms of finding new ways of working when it comes to IT, according to research commissioned by Telehouse, whose findings were published in its The Race to the Connected Future report. The research was carried out by Censuswide who surveyed IT decision makers from enterprise organisations in the UK with more than 250 employees across the manufacturing, finance, logistics, retail, and healthcare sectors.

Nearly all of the organisations surveyed feel that their IT infrastructure is advanced in maturity, with manufacturers having the strongest conviction in this respect, believing they are very ‘advanced’. Nevertheless, enterprises should be cautious as this could be misguided confidence as many have not implemented a strategy for cloud or edge computing.

Manufacturers feel under pressure to have a more mature IT infrastructure, with 48% saying that they feel compelled to have new applications and services to attract new customers, followed by 44% saying that demand for connected and personalised experiences was a main driver and 42% citing an increased demand in cyber security.

As with all businesses, manufacturers are under a great deal of pressure to keep a tight rein on their costs to remain competitive, while at the same time they need to come out with new and innovative products. IoT technology should prove to be an important factor in achieving these goals as it is a critical enabler on the factory floor, where manufacturers can look at how they can enhance the responsiveness of their manufacturing systems. To achieve this, many are adopting smart manufacturing with edge computing as its main enabler.

Indeed, the exciting world of IoT has brought about a meeting of data-centric information technology and process-centric operational technology, which allow manufacturing processes to be more integrated, streamlined, and better adapted to keep up with a dynamic market. Many modern manufacturers use what is known as the Industrial IoT (IIoT) which takes the concept of automation to a higher level.

Manufacturers are lagging when it comes to edge computing

Manufacturers are often praised for being early adopters of edge computing, as this has existed in the sector for a number of years. However, this is not reflected in the research findings, which showed that manufacturers appear to be lagging behind other industries.

Given the potential of 5G and IoT technology, astute manufacturers are exploring the implementation of smart manufacturing with edge computing. This is where most of the processing and storage elements of the IoT network is closer to the points where the data is gathered from and where the manufacturing process is required.

Among the main benefits of applying edge computing for smart manufacturing is the improvement of responsiveness as network latency is minimised. Another is improved reliability, as a facility executing smart manufacturing using edge computing, will have all its processing operating components available onsite. Therefore, distributed manufacturing units become less reliant on constant connectivity with a central data centre. While connectivity with the cloud is desirable, it is no longer as critical as it should be without edge computing. Consequently, lapses in communication will not impact manufacturing operations, ensuring uninterrupted operations.

Manufacturers lead the way in colocation

While manufacturers are slower to adopt edge computing, interestingly the sector leads the way in using colocation services, where 46% have a colocation strategy in place. Figures show that the demand from manufacturers for colocation looks set to increase to 47% by 2026. This is surprisingly low given the rising data volumes and the impact that the pandemic has had on IT infrastructure. However, it is likely that there will be an increase in adopting colocation as the potential for applications around big data, fuelled by networks and the IoT, increases.

Nearly half (48%) of manufacturers said that a leading driver for investing in colocation is on-site support. Another top driver is flexibility (36%), followed by regulatory compliance (32%). Two of the biggest use cases for colocation are the adoption of new back-office business applications and 5G networks and connected technologies. Other notable cases highlighted in the Telehouse research include access to analytical business intelligence, the implementation of AI and machine learning, which can enhance manufacturers capacity to complete tasks, make decisions and ultimately generate stronger business outcomes.

Conversely, reasons for manufacturers not outsourcing more or any of their IT infrastructure to a colocation provider are data integrity, and concerns around security and compliance. The reason for this is that some manufacturers are worried about data being exposed to more risks when they move their services online.

The lack of in-house cyber skills is a challenge

IT security remains one of the biggest challenges manufacturers face. In fact, the sector has been severely tested in respect to cybersecurity attacks since the pandemic started, according to Keeper’s 2021 Cybersecurity Census Report. It found that the average UK manufacturer has experienced 30 attacks over the past year, with 85% expecting this to increase in the year ahead.

A major concern in the sector is the lack of in-house cyber skills with many enterprises worried that their employees do not have the expertise to deal with cyberattacks. Perhaps this is exacerbated by the shortage of IT workers in the UK and the increased vulnerability of manufacturers due to the switch to remote driven by the pandemic.

Many manufacturers have security concerns indicating that this is constraining their IT decisions. Most notably, this is restricting their decisions to adopt edge computing, as well as affecting manufacturers’ use of cloud and colocation services. One of the main reasons for this is the inability to monitor data that is in motion between, to and from cloud applications. This is followed by the lack of consistent controls over multi-cloud and on-premise infrastructure and supply chain partner vulnerabilities.

Manufacturers have a way to go for IT maturity

Despite many believing they are advanced in IT maturity; the research indicates that more needs to be done to shift this perception into one where manufacturers are truly competitive.

Demand for the edge is likely to increase as manufacturers grapple with the huge volumes of data that will be generated when they take advantage of 5G and IoT technology. Undoubtedly, this will accelerate the drive towards decentralised strategies like edge computing.

Even as the 5G edge demand continues to grow, this will still weigh heavily on the infrastructure, where fibre networks, carrier centric data centres and international transatlantic routes will need to keep pace with the rate of change.

Clearly having a colocation strategy in place, with the ability to access connected ecosystems will be critical in helping manufacturers extend network reach, reduce latency and costs and improve performance as user and infrastructure demands continue to grow.

Many of the challenges the manufacturing sector faces can be alleviated by working with the right partner, who can provide the right infrastructure, security measures and low-latency connectivity required to drive the IT maturity that is needed by manufacturers to be a success in a hugely competitive marketplace.

- The author, Mark Pestridge, is the senior director at Telehouse.

Back to Homepage

Back to Technology & Innovation