Welcome to 2010 (twenty-ten). Most of us are glad to see 2009 behind us, but there remain many challenges before we recover. On the other hand, there were many exciting developments last year. Especially involving the development of social networking and whether it will work for marketing communications.
There are several things I wonder about for 2010 as I review the state of manufacturing and automation:
- Will we trust the cloud and move our data and applications there?
- Will MES start to become less expensive and less complex? When will the critical mass start to build?
- As control platforms simplify, will they commoditize?
- Will we see a resurgence in discrete manufacturing? Part of that involves the decline of automotive manufacturing. What will become the new face of automotive manufacturing?
- Will petrochemical plants keep growing in size and complexity (in Asia anyway)?
- What role will “social media” play in marketing and collaboration in automation?
- What start-ups will bring what new ideas into manufacturing and automation?
- Which startups will be purchased to increase a major’s reach?
What do you think?
