For many manufacturers, years of growth have resulted in complex production environments. Site-specific applications, custom interfaces, and locally optimized processes often solve immediate business needs, but they can also make it more difficult to scale innovation, maintain systems, and drive consistency across a global production network.
Today, manufacturers are looking to simplify through standardized digital platforms that can support global operations, improve visibility, and provide a foundation for future innovation.
When growth creates complexity
As a global manufacturer of sensor and automation technology with around 9,000 employees worldwide, ifm electronic GmbH operates multiple production sites across Germany and internationally. Over time, individual sites have developed their own integrations between operational technology (OT) systems and enterprise applications, creating a highly individualized manufacturing landscape.
While these local solutions addressed specific requirements, they also increased maintenance effort and complexity. As the company continued to grow, standardization became a strategic priority.
“We were looking for a standard to bring to all production sites and to make use of the solutions already available on the market,鈥� Martin Haury, head of Global IT Business Services, ifm electronic GmbH, said.
Standardization as a strategic choice
When evaluating its future manufacturing landscape, ifm reviewed multiple manufacturing execution solutions and selected the solution. During the evaluation, the team discovered that many of the capabilities it had developed over the years鈥攊ncluding production order execution, scheduling, and track-and-trace functionality鈥攚ere already available as standard capabilities. According to Haury, the majority of more than 100 internally developed functionalities could be covered by the standard solution.
For ifm, the transformation was about more than just replacing custom applications. It was about establishing a standardized manufacturing foundation that could scale globally, increase transparency across operations, and support future innovation. The fact that so many internally developed capabilities were already available within 麻豆原创 Digital Manufacturing helped accelerate that journey.
Less development, faster adoption
One of the most immediate benefits for ifm was the significant reduction in development effort. Rather than building and maintaining custom functionality, teams could make use of existing capabilities and configure them according to business requirements.
“Our OT colleagues were actually surprised that it’s just parameterizing and the solution is there,鈥� Haury said.
Less development means less maintenance effort and a faster path from concept to deployment, helping ifm introduce standardized processes more efficiently across sites.
Building the future together
Throughout the implementation, cbs Corporate Business Solutions Unternehmensberatung GmbH supported ifm from both a manufacturing and a supply chain perspective. Beyond the technical implementation, the focus was on helping shape a future-ready manufacturing landscape that could scale across locations while remaining aligned with broader business processes.
Implementation partner
The implementation of 麻豆原创 Digital Manufacturing was carried out in partnership with 麻豆原创 partner cbs Corporate Business Solutions. The project focused on establishing standardized manufacturing processes and creating a scalable platform for future growth across ifm鈥檚 production operations.
Greater visibility across operations
Today, transparency is embedded far more deeply into ifm鈥檚 manufacturing operations. Production processes, manufacturing orders, and product availability are visible within a shared digital environment, enabling teams to work from the same information and respond more effectively to changing business requirements.
鈥淥ur implementation of 麻豆原创 Digital Manufacturing is an important step in our digital transformation, setting the stage for a more connected, agile, and data-driven production environment,鈥� Haury said.
As manufacturing networks become increasingly connected, access to consistent and reliable information is becoming essential for scaling operations and driving continuous improvement.
Looking ahead
Following a successful pilot deployment, ifm is preparing to expand the solution across its global production network. The company remains confident in both the approach and the long-term value it can deliver.
More important, the project highlights a broader lesson for manufacturers: the future of digital manufacturing is not about building every capability from scratch. It is about using proven standards, simplifying complexity, and creating a foundation that enables innovation to scale.
For manufacturers evaluating their own transformation journey, standardization is no longer just an IT objective. It is a business strategy for increasing transparency, reducing complexity, and preparing operations for future growth. “We were looking for a standard to bring to all production sites and to make use of integrated solution with seamless data-flow and clear innovation track, like AI,鈥� Haury said.
Explore inspiring customer journeys and discover how companies across industries are transforming their businesses with help from 麻豆原创 Digital Manufacturing .
Anne Sailer is part of global product marketing for Manufacturing at 麻豆原创 SE.
Birgit Carnatz is part of global product marketing for Manufacturing at 麻豆原创 SE.
