Conclusion

The evolution of digital technologies has turned the traditional economy on its head, and this phenomenon is now extending to industry too. IT has long been present in industry, notably through the automation of equipment, man/machine communication interfaces, and design processes that feed directly into the numerically-controlled machine for machining parts. All this has helped to improve business performance, but today we're in the age of digitalization and interconnection.

In the past, digital information was mainly used by marketing, which led to products and consumers being connected to the Internet, but tomorrow the factory and its technicians will also be connected. We now speak of "smart industry", "cyber factory" or "digital factory".

Digital technology is shaking things up through mobility and real time. This brings greater flexibility...