ABSTRACT
Digital transformation using the Internet of Things (IoT) and their adoption in enterprise systems is fast becoming widely adopted. However, these are fraught with complexities and challenges as automation gets transformed to assembly lines. Manufacturing can be either process or discrete. In process, which is continuous movement of material between batches, the IoT can play a role in inventory control. Similarly, in discrete manufacturing, assembly lines aided by robotic arms can be controlled by the IoT. Manufacturing process includes a number of steps from design, prototyping, assembly, quality checking, and marketing and any automation needs to include complete vertical integration of all these functions to yield business benefits. In the external environment, the extended value chain also needs to be integrated to this automation, including customers, distributors, and vendors, so that companies can reconfigure products and services dynamically based on market feedback. Conventional systems architecture would not be able to scale up to this demand and hence a dynamic and robust mechanism is explained in this chapter.
