America’s Real Manufacturing Advantage
A new wave of software innovation is about to transform industry
by Helmuth Ludwig and Eric Spiegel

http://www.strategy-business.com/article/00240?pg=all

To continue our discussion on the changing dynamics in manufacturing as a way to enhance competitive separation, this article offers a comprehensive summary of the potential for changing the face of manufacturing

…We are hopeful about the future of manufacturing in the U.S. for a more fundamental reason. It is the economy best positioned to seize on deeper changes that can lead to a real, sustainable manufacturing renaissance, one based on software technology and its profound effect on the entire manufacturing value chain.
…..Competitive advantage in the 21st century will be influenced by factors such as cheap energy and wage rates—but it will be decided by the ability of countries and regions to enable advanced design and manufacturing
Some of the key software enhancements are:
• Product design: Increasingly powerful visualization and simulation software is enabling manufacturers to speed and improve product design, testing, and optimization
• Production planning: Automation design technology makes it possible to digitally design entire factories or individual pieces of equipment, and then simulate and optimize against a range of production scenarios for cost, speed, productivity, utilization, energy usage, and quality.
• Engineering: Modern production may have hundreds of interrelated automation components. New software makes it possible for engineers to program and coordinate all automation tasks from a single portal, optimizing workflows and improving productivity.
• Execution: Manufacturing execution systems monitor production performance in real time, enabling short-term control of manufacturing output and long-term optimization of production-unit configuration.
• Service: Mobile devices, powerful networking, and “big data” analytics are enabling technology-based services opportunities such as remote monitoring and advanced predictive failure analysis that will reduce costs and improve utilization and productivity