Technology investments are made to solve specific business problems. In our technology-enabled world, enterprises of all sorts are allocating precious capital to make their operations “smart.” For manufacturers, becoming “smart” is about more than investments in digital transformation and enabling technologies. Smart manufacturing is about the pursuit of continuous process improvement. Standard key performance indicators like Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) may seem easily solved but can be significantly enhanced by technologies that nest under the broad idea of the Internet of Things (IoT). But linking IoT and other technologies directly to OEE at scale–from the machine- to line- to plant-level–requires a measured, strategic approach. At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter how much data you collect or how quickly you collect that data if you cannot translate it into actionable insights that solve specific business problems.
