A press release crossed my desk today, which I just have to comment on titled, German Government Announces Production Intelligence Funding for Jedox Big Data Project.
This is another in a classic line of German government initiatives to help engineering and manufacturing thrive in that country.
In this case, an initiative 4.0 strategy will be funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMFB) to advance data-driven optimization for complex manufacturing processes.
That in itself is interesting, but look at the team they’re putting together to do this:
· Jedox, a big data analytics software provider;
· Fraunhofer Institute for Physical Measurement Techniques;
· Carl Zeiss, famous for metrology;
· Fischer IMF, an automotive supplier;
· and Micronas, a sensor manufacturer.
Essentially, the BMFB are bringing together experts in metrology, physical measurement techniques, sensor manufacturing and data analytics to try and find better ways to manufacture complex products.
This is one of those things that leaves me wondering about what it is we’re not doing, but should on this side of the Atlantic. Maybe we’re stuck in an obsession with a form of capitalism that demands the industry step up and do things on their own through trade associations or single large entities that become so big they define the standards, the way General Motors or Boeing used to.
I think we need to look at the German model, a model we know works.
Germany is a country with strong labor unions, with high wages, a high standard of living and a great deal of regulation. Yet they are competitive in a global manufacturing environment competing with low cost Asian manufacturers for highly sophisticated goods and even some modest technology. It’s like mass production of automobiles and relatively simple consumer goods. They can make and sell dishwashers in Germany competitively.
Now we’ve got to wonder, what are they doing that we’re not doing?
Germany can blend government and industry. They can take a more socialized approach to technology advancement with a free market approach and they meld them together in a way that works.
I think we need to look at this model and think really, really hard about the way we model industry, manufacturing and engineering on this side of the Atlantic, because they have got something to teach us.
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