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The study outlines the opportunities for ICT in manufacturing
industry

Key sectors to spend $237bn on ICT in 2019

LONDON, August 24, 2015

The manufacturing, energy and utilities sectors will spend a combined total of €206.51 billion ($237.26 billion) on information and communication technology (ICT) in 2019, according to a new analysis from Frost & Sullivan.

Frost & Sullivan, a global growth consulting firm, has released its latest analysis called the ‘Connected Industry Insight Series: ICT Opportunities in the Global Smart Plants Market’.

The study outlines the opportunities for ICT in the manufacturing industry and analyses ICT spend in the manufacturing sector across components such as IT hardware, IT software, IT services, and communication.

The research also offers recommendations for different types of providers in the IT ecosystem.

ICT deployments in manufacturing industries are currently limited to the sporadic use of machine to machine (M2M) communications and cloud solutions, said the study.

However, cloud adoption for core processes, cyber security efforts, and the implementation of artificial intelligence for advanced robotics are important for the development of fully automated plants, it added.

Strong long-term prospects exist particularly for IT service, communication equipment, fixed network, and wireless network providers in the industrial automation space, it said.

On the other hand, revenue opportunities for mobile network operators (MNOs) will remain limited. Demand for cellular connectivity services will be low when compared to fixed-line and short range machine-to-machine (M2M) services, said the study.

Collaborating with industrial automation providers to design, integrate and implement fully automated plants based on manufacturer requirements will be a crucial step in bringing the concept of smart plants to reality, it said.

ICT vendors must work with other providers in the IT ecosystem to develop end-to-end services that include network equipment, connectivity, virtualisation, cloud-based software, data analytics and cyber security.

Shuba Ramkumar, information and communication technologies senior research analyst, Frost & Sullivan, said: “The plant-floor is still dominated by fixed networks installed over industrial Ethernet or fieldbus protocols for field-level networks.

“ICT vendors can contribute to the development of improved plant-floor communication systems in collaboration with automation vendors,” she said.

“Communication equipment vendors need to build comprehensive services which takes into consideration inputs from all stakeholders in the production process,” explained Ramkumar.

“By leveraging partnerships with fixed line providers and IT solution providers, MNOs too can extend existing relationships with manufacturers beyond network provision to offer integrated solutions for the plant-floor and branch offices,” she added. – TradeArabia News Service




Tags: Energy | ICT | manufacturing | Frost & Sullivan | 2019 |

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