What is the cost of digital transformation for German SMEs?

Summary

A fundamental change in value creation is taking place in industry. Companies that used to manufacture products now offer hybrid solutions with services that can be booked or purchased. In mechanical engineering, this business model is already known as “machine-as-a-service” and can be transferred to many areas. Instead of selling industrial equipment, this requires the full use of in-house service knowledge (e.g., design knowledge about the machine, upcoming operations and maintenance tasks, optimal machine configurations, and knowledge about ongoing wear and tear) to be able to guarantee customers the contractually assured availability or more energy- and material-efficient operation.

We outline the highly competitive starting situation for German SMEs, explain the fundamentals and application examples of such operator models, and present Service-Meister and GAIA-X, two lighthouse research projects that have set out to support German SMEs on their way to Future 4.0 with AI-based approaches to service platforms.