Food majors take stock as consumer behaviors shift | Don't forget about innovation as part of Industry 4.0 adoption | AR is transforming the way oil, gas companies operate
J.M. Smucker, General Mills, Mondelez and other food brands are re-evaluating their portfolios as consumer preferences move away from processed foods. This business shift has meant a combination of selling off legacy brands while looking to acquire upstarts, such as Hershey's purchase of Smart Puffs.
Industry 4.0 presents a dual opportunity to improve existing operations and innovate, write Andy Daecher and Brenna Sniderman. They note a variety of internal goals for digital transformation, as well as variance in what operational functions have moved furthest toward a fully digital state.
Oil and natural gas companies are stepping up adoption of augmented reality, enticed by the promise of efficiency gains, enhanced productivity and cost savings. Chevron, which has deployed over 110 sets of Microsoft HoloLens head-mounted displays so far, bets the technology will help reduce specialists' international travel and generate millions of dollars in savings over time.
Find and engage the next generation of consumers Fetch helps brands drive lifetime value with a deeply engaged audience. The platform is retailer agnostic, capturing billions of line-item purchases and maintaining a 360-degree view of how America shops. This infographic illustrates how and why brands work with Fetch. With visibility into $152B in retail sales annually and a gamified experience beloved by Gen Z, Fetch is America's Rewards App. Explore the infographic to learn more.
Drones, robots and other automated technologies are changing every aspect of the online ordering, packing and shipping process and will eventually lead the way to a completely automated process that might be known as the "physical cloud," Christopher Mims writes.
EnTrans International leveraged visual cues, gamification and other tools to increase engagement in its companywide safety program, writes Karen Czor, director of environmental health and safety. Since the program's launch, EnTrans has reduced recordable injuries by more than 50%, while cutting its rate of such incidents by more than half.
Only 23% of respondents to a 2018 Frost & Sullivan survey said their plants employed valve monitoring technology, with key obstacles including reliability concerns and a lack of qualified technicians. Corrosion was cited by respondents as the most important factor in valve failure.
Industry needs to connect with communities locally and globally to rethink education and teach youths the importance of science, technology, engineering and math skills, says Mike Train, president of Emerson Electric. "Hopefully, what we can do is make the education more appealing and more interesting, so it doesn't feel like you have to suffer through those three or four years," he says.
The Mahoning Valley Manufacturers Coalition in Ohio is tackling workforce issues by connecting with 21 school districts in its region. The coalition works in schools through classroom visits, apprenticeship programs, curriculum advising and recruitment events.
