Digital Factories: The Fourth Industrial Revolution?

One vision of the future of industry could mean fewer workers, more machines and full automation.

CNN Money
Apr 15, 2015

One vision of the future of industry could mean fewer workers, more machines and full automation. 

 

Latest in Home
The Logistics and Transportation Survival Guide
Sponsored
The Logistics and Transportation Survival Guide
June 18, 2025
I Stock 2159312051
Serendipity Is No Accident: What the Post-it Teaches Us About "Luck"
June 26, 2025
A shopping cart filled with groceries at a store in Rowland Heights, Calif., April 3, 2025.
Key Inflation Gauge Rises as Americans Cut Back on Spending
June 27, 2025
HS790 Drone.
Holy Stone Unveils High-Performance Folding GPS Drone
June 26, 2025
Related Stories
Fireworks
Home
Mnet Newsletter Returns July 7
Outofoffice
Home
Notice: No Mnet Newsletters Next Week
Outofoffice
Home
No Mnet Newsletters Until Jan. 3
Making Your Supply Chains More Efficient
Sponsor Content
Making Your Supply Chains More Efficient
More
The Logistics and Transportation Survival Guide
Sponsored
The Logistics and Transportation Survival Guide
In the fast-paced world of transportation and logistics, staying as efficient and organized as possible is critical to survival. 
June 18, 2025
I Stock 2159312051
Operations
Serendipity Is No Accident: What the Post-it Teaches Us About "Luck"
When curiosity meets preparation, ordinary mistakes transform into revolutionary innovations
June 26, 2025
A shopping cart filled with groceries at a store in Rowland Heights, Calif., April 3, 2025.
Economics
Key Inflation Gauge Rises as Americans Cut Back on Spending
Prices rose 2.3% in May compared with a year ago.
June 27, 2025
HS790 Drone.
Aerospace
Holy Stone Unveils High-Performance Folding GPS Drone
The drone features a professional-grade camera, capturing in 6K and 4K.
June 26, 2025
Cans of PAM cooking spray, a Conagra brand, rest on a supermarket shelf in Cincinnati, June 25, 2019.
Operations
Conagra Says It Will Phase Out Artificial Colors
Artificial colors will be removed from its frozen foods by the end of this year.
June 27, 2025
A screenshot of the Brewco Saw Systems website.
Operations
Brewco Saw Systems to Double Workforce, Expand in Kentucky
The additional space will accommodate a host of new equipment.
June 26, 2025
Smoke rises from the North Hyde electrical substation, which caught fire last night, leading to the closure of the Heathrow Airport, in London, March 21, 2025.
Operations
Bad Bushings Caused Costly Fire That Shut Down Heathrow Airport
And they knew about it for years.
July 2, 2025
iStock/Sundry Photography
Operations
Jabil Plans to Create Nearly 1,200 Jobs in North Carolina with Manufacturing Investment
Tech giants converge: Massive AI manufacturing investment transforms North Carolina's economy.
July 2, 2025
Laser tube cutting machine at Fossil Industries, Hunker, Pa.
Operations
Shuttered Pennsylvania Metalworking Facility Acquired, Reopened
Its new owner plans to triple the current workforce by the end of the year.
June 23, 2025
Howard Industries corporate logo over Mississippi skyline.
Operations
Howard Industries Investing $236M in Mississippi
Electrical transformer, technology products manufacturer looks to create 450 jobs.
June 27, 2025
Rescue workers look for survivors after at an explosion and a fire at a pharmaceutical factory in an industrial area in Sangareddy, some 50 kilometers (31 miles) from Hyderabad, India, Monday, June 30, 2025.
Safety
Deadly Explosion at Pharmaceutical Factory in Southern India
Fatal explosion exposes safety concerns in India's booming pharmaceutical sector.
July 1, 2025
A lone shopper pushes a cart toward the entrance of a Costco warehouse, March 13, 2025, in Sheridan, Colo.
Operations
Lululemon Sues Costco for Selling 'Dupes'
Copycat clothing controversy: The legal battle reshaping athleisure market.
July 1, 2025
President Donald Trump speaks to the media before walking across the South Lawn of the White House to board Marine One en route to Joint Base Andrews, Md., and on to Florida, Tuesday, July 1, 2025, in Washington.
Operations
War of Words Over Big Bill Intensifies Between Musk, Trump
Political warfare erupts over America's financial future.
July 1, 2025
Martin Winterkorn, former CEO of the German car manufacturer 'Volkswagen', arrives for a questioning at an investigation committee of the German federal parliament in Berlin, Germany on Jan. 19, 2017.
Operations
German Court Suspends Diesel Scandal Trial of Former Volkswagen CEO
Shocking twist: VW diesel scandal trial derailed by unexpected health complications.
July 1, 2025
A pelican flies over new marsh grass in front of a state-initiated dredging project near East Grand Terre Island, where the Gulf of Mexico meets Barataria Bay along the Louisiana coast, Aug. 10, 2010.
Safety
NTSB Says Company Failed to Shut Down Oil Pipeline for Nearly 13 Hours After Pressure Dropped
The leak off the coast of Louisiana was the result of underwater landslides.
June 27, 2025