SCOPE: What exactly is "Minds + Machines" and how did it come about?

Thomas Schulz: The Industrial Internet is a prerequisite and pioneer of digitalization. Connected machines, big data and advanced analytics are opening up opportunities to develop new, disruptive business models in all industrial sectors and beyond. GE recognized the potential of the Industrial Internet early on and has been hosting Minds + Machines, an annual conference on the latest developments in this field, since 2012. The seventh edition of Minds + Machines will take place this year on October 30 and 31 in San Francisco.

SCOPE: How can companies increase their productivity with the help of the Industrial Internet and what business models are emerging from this?

Thomas Schulz, Channel Manager at GE Digital. (Image: General Electric)

Schulz: Connecting people, machines and data makes the value chain more transparent and therefore shorter. The basis for this is the digital twin, the digital representation of an industrial component or system throughout its entire service life. Realistic simulations can be used to predictively optimize the function and thus increase productivity. The digital twin also enables predictive maintenance. Ideally, the intelligent analysis of large volumes of data can lead to the development of new business models.

SCOPE: What can the business-to-business industry learn from the business-to-customer (B2C) sector and how can the findings be implemented?

Schulz: Developments in the B2C sector show that the platform economy is of crucial importance. This is also reflected in the industrial sector, where the financial outlay and complexity are much greater. Open ecosystems and data security place demands on industrial platforms that exceed those in the consumer sector. In general, it can be predicted that digital platforms will be the dominant market architecture of our time and the main driver of the economy in the coming years.

SCOPE: How is digitalization developing in Europe and in comparison to the USA and other industrialized nations?

Schulz : Silicon Valley receives a disproportionate amount of attention in the public debate due to the digital developments emanating from there and the obvious lighthouse companies. However, it is also clear that both the capital required to finance start-ups and the software development skills are available and used globally, whether in Tel Aviv, Budapest or Berlin.

SCOPE: What kind of support and advice can GE offer its customers during the digital transformation?

Schulz: With Predix, GE has developed the world's first and only industrial cloud platform for industry and made it publicly available at the beginning of 2016 so that developers can contribute to the growth of the digital industrial ecosystem. Industrial apps can be created and operated on Predix. Today, 100 industrial apps are already available on the platform and around 38,000 developers worldwide already have access to Predix. As a pioneer in the field of digitalization, GE can advise users, support them with our network of over 1,100 partners and, if desired, accompany them through to implementation. As an industrial company, all of GE's business units work with digital solutions on Predix, so we can contribute our extensive expertise to both digital applications and the industrial sector.