How a collaborative approach is driving Ireland from Industry 4.0 to Industry 5.0

Industry 5.0 insights

• Whereas Industry 4.0 refers to the use of digitalization, data connectivity and OT/IT interconnection to optimize manufacturing operations, Industry 5.0 emphasizes seamless collaboration between human and machine components.
• Ireland has a disproportionately high density of manufacturers that have developed into hubs of industry activity in a relatively small geographic footprint, which has encouraged companies to collaborate and partner, fostering innovation.
• The Irish government offers support to help industry manage the cost of advanced manufacturing projects, including a 25% R&D tax credit, grants to support RD&I and training grants aimed at upskilling the workforce for next-generation activities.

The blessing and the curse of Industry 5.0 is that it’s an open-ended concept. It can help manufacturers improve nearly any aspect of operations and supply chain in a way that’s unique to their needs. At the same time, because every Industry 5.0 project is different, and there’s no one-size-fits-all approach, such projects can be difficult to plan and implement.

Industry 5.0 has many challenges. For instance, there are a lack of use cases at commercial scale which demonstrate how different technology configurations can demonstrate value across the manufacturing value chain. Additionally, identifying the right skill set to operate future processes is difficult. Finally, as the volume of data increases, so does the risk of cyber security breaches, and companies must tackle multiple challenges in tandem if they are to realize the potential of Industry 5.0.

Around the world, most manufacturers are navigating these challenges with a tight-knit group of partners and consultants, but in Ireland unlocking the potential of Industry 5.0 is a larger group effort. Manufacturers, government bodies and academic institutions are all working together, and efforts are proving fruitful, with some projects even being held up as global examples.

What’s driving the Industry 5.0 collaboration?

Collaboration is almost a byproduct of operating in Ireland. The country has a disproportionately high density of manufacturers that have developed into hubs of industry activity in a relatively small geographic footprint. This encourages companies to collaborate and partner.

At the same time, the Irish government proactively works with manufacturers to help them embrace digital, disruptive and sustainable technologies through active collaboration.

One example of this is the industry-led, government-supported consortium called the Lighthouse Partnership in Disruptive and Sustainable Technologies. Initially focused on traditional pharmaceutical manufacturing, the consortium seeks to accelerate manufacturing transformation in Ireland through ecosystem collaboration.

The first challenge the consortium addressed was confusion about what exactly Industry 5.0 is. It did this by creating a common vocabulary and base level of understanding about Industry 5.0 technologies and where they would address challenges and bring added value.

Next, the consortium conducted a digital maturity and sustainability assessment with eight organizations to help them understand the current state of their operations and identify future priorities. For the pharmaceutical industry, these priorities included digitally transforming operations without replacing large capital investments and closing connectivity gaps to enable digital transformation.

From this work, the consortium identified several collaborative and individual Industry 5.0 projects, which are now underway. The consortium is also now rolling out the model it used for pharmaceutical manufacturers to all of Ireland’s manufacturing sectors and those that support them, like the engineering, technology and sustainability sectors.

Supporting industry with digital manufacturing

Ireland has good reason to keep its manufacturing sector at the leading edge of innovation. Manufacturing accounts for about one-third of the country’s GDP, and the sector employs about 11% of its workforce.

The industry’s significance is reflected in the level of government resources that exist to support advanced manufacturing and collaboration.

The country’s new manufacturing research and training center, Digital Manufacturing Ireland (DMI) for example, is a strategic national initiative supported by the Irish government. DMI was created with a dual strategy: To help manufacturers in Ireland accelerate their adoption of digital technologies and to upskill the Irish workforce to build the necessary capability and capacity to operate future facilities. To ensure coordination and synergy, DMI project manages the activities of the Lighthouse Partnership in Disruptive & Sustainable Technologies.

Ireland has also established other research and training centers that work hand in hand with industry. The National Institute for Bioprocessing Research and Training (NIBRT), for instance, aims to help grow and further develop Ireland’s biopharmaceutical industry. The institute uses collaboration between industry, government and academia to help create innovative training and research solutions for biomanufacturers. Similarly, NIBRT hosts a large consortium, the National Cell, Gene and Vaccine Forum, which spans small and large enterprises, the research and clinical community and regulators. The consortiums assists them in collaborating on projects and helps develop national capacity in emerging therapeutics.

Several supports are available from the Irish government to help the industry manage the cost of their advanced manufacturing projects. Those supports include a 25% R&D tax credit, grants to support RD&I and training grants aimed at upskilling the workforce for next-generation activities.

R&D center for 3D printing, AR/VR, collaborative robots

Thanks in part to the support available to IDA clients, multinational manufacturers are choosing Ireland as their innovation hub.

Earlier this year, for instance, electrification and automation company ABB opened a new multi-million-dollar Irish R&D center. The center will use technologies like 3D printing, augmented reality/virtual reality (AR/VR) and collaborative robots to better meet the needs of the pulp and paper industry.

In some cases, companies’ projects have received global recognition.

For instance, the World Economic Forum designated the Cork operations of Janssen Sciences Ireland as a “sustainability lighthouse.” The operations are entirely powered by renewable energy sources and use adaptive process control and digital twin technology to optimize manufacturing and other energy-intensive operations. This has helped Janssen reduce the site’s carbon emissions by 56% per product kilogram.

Better together

Digital transformation can feel like an overwhelming endeavor because of all that comes with it: Disruptive technologies, process changes, employee upskilling, security concerns and more. In Ireland, manufacturers can take on these challenges with greater confidence by using the help and experience of others rather than going it alone.

Chantelle Kiernan, senior scientific advisor — Innovation and digital transformation, IDA Ireland. Edited by David Miller, content manager, Control Engineering, CFE Media and Technology, dmiller@cfemedia.com.

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Keywords: Industry 5.0, R&D

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