Digitalization holds enormous potential for companies in the mechanical engineering sector. However, small and medium-sized companies in particular are often unable to assess the specific impact this will have on them. What they lack is a digitalization strategy. In a recent study, Item examines the challenges and opportunities that digitalization holds for SMEs. In addition to evaluating current studies and publications, the main focus here was on practical experience. Experts from the areas of management, purchasing and construction were surveyed, followed by 141 online interviews. The results showed that digitalization is not a threat, especially for SMEs, but an opportunity to increase efficiency, as Item explained.

Accepting the challenge, becoming more efficient
Trends such as Industry 4.0 have become firmly established in mechanical engineering. The respondents also agree on the further development of digitalization: 68.8% agree with the statement that processes and workflows in equipment and mechanical engineering will become increasingly digital over the next five years. Despite this clear sentiment, the digitalization trend has not yet led to uniform industry standards. Accordingly, there is a lack of an urgently needed guideline for the industry in this area. Mechanical engineering companies that are already active in this area are often guided by their customers' specifications. This is particularly often the case in design.

A major challenge currently needs to be overcome here: Construction is increasingly becoming a time factor due to high capacity utilization and rising customer expectations with regard to short project lead times. Frequent outsourcing is the result. However, specialized service providers for operating resources and customer solutions will not be able to cope with this work using conventional means. There is no doubt that mechanical engineering must find an answer to this.

Innovative online configurators offer a solution that can significantly reduce time and costs. As a result, not only are standard tasks processed more quickly, but intuitive user interfaces also eliminate the need for extensive training.

Digitalization strategy mostly non-existent
The majority of study participants see digitalization as a fundamental factor for the future of mechanical engineering. However, only 9.2 percent say that their companies have a concrete strategy for digitalization. This is primarily due to the highly differentiated nature of mechanical engineering: Each company represents such an individual combination of different factors (industry, company size, market conditions) that a standardized approach to digital transformation does not apply.

This is why an interdisciplinary perspective is particularly important: All areas of the company must be involved, as digitalization is not a process that only applies to certain areas. If there are any concerns on the part of employees, these can be specifically addressed with training courses or workshops. The interviewees were in complete agreement on this.

Item has developed a checklist for companies wondering where they currently stand in terms of digitalization. Using six basic questions and three possible answers for each, companies can determine their current level of digitalization. as