Shift Magazine - March 2021 - S10

Connected BY A
'digital thread'

Digitization gives automakers a way to constantly
optimize manufacturing, customize products

BY JACK KEEBLER

n 2018, a Tesla Model 3 reviewed
by Consumers Reports was panned
for its long stopping distance. Upon
notice of the publication's negative
review, Tesla CEO Elon Musk pushed
out an over-the-air update that adjusted
the antilock braking system's algorithm,
cutting the stopping distance by 19 feet.
Nine days later, the publication gave the
Model 3 its recommendation.
Keeping
communications
flowing
between the factory and the vehicle
throughout a product's life cycle is one of
the benefits of digitized manufacturing,
sometimes called the Industrial Internet
of Things. This network of connected
devices that send and receive data is
a cornerstone of a broader movement
known as Industry 4.0, or the Fourth
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shift * march 2021

" We are no longer building
products to just a set
of specifications. We're
building products with the
mindset of the individuals
that will be in those
products, interacting with
those products, and it's just
a really exciting time for
all of us in the automotive
industry. "
Mike Mikula, Ford

Industrial Revolution.
What automakers seek when adopting digitization is a " feedback loop " that

guides them as they work to continuously
improve manufacturing and to customize
products to buyers' wants and needs.
" We are no longer building products to
just a set of specifications. We're building
products with the mindset of the individuals that will be in those products, interacting with those products, and it's just
a really exciting time for all of us in the
automotive industry, " said Mike Mikula,
chief engineer of advanced manufacturing at Ford Motor Co.
He was among the panelists at the
Automotive News Shift Mobility Forum
session called " Consumers and the
Digitization of Manufacturing " during
CES in January. The panel also featured experts from Ricardo Consulting,
Microsoft, embedded-systems company
Etas and NetApp, a provider of software
and cloud services.
Before you can tap into the information coming from the product and from
the production line, you must connect

Shift Magazine - March 2021

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