Premier Li Keqiang put forward the formulation of the "Internet Plus" Action Plan for the first time in the Report on the Work of the Government. The official wording is as follows: "Formulate the 'Internet Plus' Action Plan, promote the integration of the mobile Internet, cloud computing, big data, the Internet of Things and other technologies with modern manufacturing, boost the sound development of e-commerce, the industrial Internet and Internet finance, and guide Internet companies to expand into the international market."
For a time, "Internet Plus" seemed to become a trend and a hotly discussed topic in the Internet, manufacturing, information technology, logistics and media industries. However, after the initial buzz and impetuosity, people began to explore the genuine connotation of "Internet Plus".
"Internet Plus" vs. "Industry 4.0"
At the Hannover Messe in April 2013, the German government proposed the Industry 4.0 strategy, aiming to enhance the competitiveness of German industry and seize the leading position in the new round of industrial revolution. The concept of Industry 4.0 refers to the Fourth Industrial Revolution led by intelligent manufacturing. This strategy intends to transform the manufacturing sector into an intelligent one by fully integrating information and communication technologies (ICT) with cyber-physical systems (CPS).
On October 10, 2014, during his visit to Germany, Premier Li Keqiang and German Chancellor Angela Merkel jointly issued the China-Germany Cooperation Action Framework: Shaping Innovation Together. As an independent section, "Industry 4.0" was explicitly included in the framework, thus becoming a key part of China-Germany cooperation.
The Industry 4.0 initiative mainly covers three core themes: smart factory, smart production and smart logistics.
- Smart factory focuses on the research of intelligent production systems and processes, as well as the implementation of networked and distributed production facilities.
- Smart production mainly involves the production logistics management of the entire enterprise, human-machine interaction, and the application of 3D technologies in industrial production. The initiative will attach particular importance to the participation of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), striving to make SMEs users and beneficiaries of the new generation of intelligent production technologies, as well as creators and suppliers of advanced industrial production technologies.
- Smart logistics integrates logistics resources through the Internet, the Internet of Things and the logistics network, giving full play to the efficiency of existing logistics resource suppliers, while enabling demanders to quickly obtain matched services and logistics support.
In fact, the introduction of "Internet Plus" can be regarded as an expansion of the Industry 4.0 strategy, extending it to "Industry N 4.0" to realize the integration of traditional industries with the Internet in a broader range of fields.
Wide Gap Between China's Three-Side Sealing Bag Making Machine Manufacturing and Industry 4.0 & Internet Plus
Both Industry 4.0 and Internet Plus depict a promising future for the manufacturing industry. Nevertheless, for China's three-side sealing bag making machine sector, there is still a considerable gap to reach this promising future.
China's packaging machinery manufacturing industry started relatively late. Objectively speaking, despite over 30 years of development since the reform and opening-up, both the equipment manufacturing and component manufacturing of China's three-side sealing bag making machines have only achieved quantitative breakthroughs rather than qualitative leaps. A striking fact is that China's packaging manufacturing industry has few truly remarkable inventions and creations to showcase internationally, and the number of patents granted in developed countries in Europe and the United States is very small. No enterprise in China's packaging manufacturing industry has truly led the international development trend. In most cases, the industry still relies on imitation, closely following the footsteps of foreign advanced competitors.
However, although China lags far behind developed countries like Germany in basic technologies, it is nearly on par with the world's advanced levels in Internet and IT technologies, and even takes a leading position in some fields. The main reason is that Internet and IT technologies have a short development history, and China launched relevant research and exploration at the early stage of their emergence, enabling it to keep pace with international advanced standards. In contrast, basic technologies in industrialized countries such as Germany have been developed for hundreds of years, leaving China far behind in this regard.
Therefore, in developing Industry 4.0 or Internet Plus, China should focus more on basic technologies rather than Internet and IT technologies. The latter can only serve as an icing on the cake, never a timely help. Without the support of basic technologies, China's Industry 4.0 and Internet Plus will only be castles in the air and image projects that look good but serve no practical purpose.
China's Three-Side Sealing Bag Making Machine Industry Must First Clear the Threshold to Embrace Internet Plus
In the Internet Plus era, the top priority for China's three-side sealing bag making machine manufacturing industry is to make great efforts to upgrade basic technologies, including design, processing, assembly, craftsmanship, automation, materials and other aspects. To date, the main problems of products manufactured by the industry are lack of precision, poor durability and instability. These issues cannot be solved by Internet and IT technologies alone. The only effective solution is to upgrade basic technologies.
