Insights from Omdia's manufacturing technology team.

Here are five themes expected to be the focus of this year’s Hannover Messe trade show, one of the largest industrial trade fairs in the world, according to Omdia, the sister research arm of AI Business.

1. Green is good

The shift to greener messaging will be significant, with vendors emphasizing the capabilities of their solutions and technologies in aiding manufacturing companies to minimize their environmental footprint.

Alongside the dedicated halls focused on energy, “green data” will also be a key theme. This outlines how manufacturers can collect, measure and report their sustainability improvements.

Anticipate numerous releases, including AWS’ Customer Carbon Footprint tool, and Siemens’ SiGreen supporting the reduction of products’ carbon footprints.

2. More 5G and AI

5G and Artificial Intelligence (AI) dominated the virtual Hannover Messe in 2021 and will continue to do so in 2022. Industrial 5G is still in the early stage of adoption and promises the implementation of the new, and enhancement of existing, applications.

To highlight the technology potential, there are numerous 5G dedicated sessions in the program, multiple demonstrations, and product and platform presentations hosted by ACIA, Qualcomm, Fraunhofer, Siemens, Ericsson and many others.

3. Webscalers galore

Omdia expects a big presence from AWS, Microsoft and Google, as the webscalers reshape traditional business models, and from the likes of Amdocs, which is positioning itself as a partner for cloudification. Co-opetition will be the name of the game.

4. Edge computing

Pre-COVID at the 2019 Hannover Messe, edge computing was trending, and this will continue, buoyed by industry partnerships especially between hardware and software companies (e.g. Google and Litmus Automation). The focus on the distribution of compute power throughout the technology stack will see everything from smarter sensors to ruggedized micro data centers exhibited as the ideal location for varying analytics.

5. Clouds for manufacturing

With the hiatus in live events over the last couple of years, expect to see some big announcements around verticalized ‘clouds for manufacturing’ along with the launch of additional applications specifically for manufacturing customers. This will also include developments to support ‘cloud for sustainability.’

For the full Omdia report, click here.