The System Integrator of the Fourth Industrial Revolution
Author : Paige West, Group Editor, DPA, PBSI & Connectivity
30 March 2020
How is the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) going to impact System Integrators (SIs) and the markets they work in? I spoke with David Baskett, Technical Manager, SolutionsPT who provided some insight.
How will their job role evolve?
The economy is moving from product to service, so too does the expectation of the integrator. Much more business value will come from being able to deliver on saving the end users time, unlocking more data for analytics to the business, and delivering on outcomes for manufacturing productivity.
SIs need to find a careful balance between serving the legacy/current vs helping to drive the new. Yet finding this balance is the tough part as there isn’t one framework for every market. It’s a matter of finding what’s right for them; if they’ve got a business model that works and they see it working for the next three or four years, then they need to plan around that. It then might be an idea to create a smaller, spin-off team (who aren’t held back by budgetary constraints) that focus on new projects – so they’ll have a core business model and a growth business model.
However, it’s all going to depend on what market they’re in. Food & Beverage vs Infrastructure, for example, are going to have completely different visions for the next four or so years.
Read the full article in the April issue of PBSI
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