In the classic sense of the word, digitization means the creation of di- gital representations of physical objects, events or analogue media. According to Wikipedia, the term refers by extension (and nowadays most commonly) to the shift towards digital processes by means of information and communication technology. References to the ‘digiti- zation’ of education, business and society are synonymous with ‘digital transformation’ and ‘digital revolution’. This has an impact on educa- tion, business, culture and politics, and on the world of industry too. Industry 4.0 describes the result of a fully digitalised industry with complete data collection and availability, intelligent systems, a high degree of automation, maximum flexibility and globally-connected networks throughout the entire supply chain right up to the point of sale.

Digitization can therefore be considered as an umbrella term for In- dustry 4.0, as well as for individual transformations on the path to achieving the overall objective. The management consulting firm McKinsey estimates that Germany’s medium-sized companies could potentially produce up to 126 billion euros of additional value crea- tion by 2025 through consistent digitization. Anybody who ventures into digital projects in production, sales or product development has a good chance of boosting their growth on a long-term basis. Despite this potential, many companies still show obvious reluctance: only one in two small and medium-sized companies considers digitization as an opportunity, which is the conclusion of the McKinsey study entitled ‘The Digitization of the German Mittelstand’.

And what applies to Germany surely also applies in a modified form and with different figures to many other countries. It is clear, then, that although the vision of Industry 4.0 is certainly still some way off realisation, digitization should nevertheless already be on the agenda of each and every company in order to unlock existing potential.

In our last article, we made reference to the fact that, in order to im- plement the overall objective of Industry 4.0, the textile industry must solve an additional problem that some other industries do not face: the complete automation of the textile supply chain. The obvious choke point here is sewing, which has so far proven impossible or at least extremely complicated to automate. Unlike many other industries, as a result of this large parts of the textile and clothing industries were predominantly relocated to lower-wage countries - preferably in Asia. „The caravan is moving on“ is an often used phrase for the ongoing shifting of these industries. However, a significant change is now in the offing.