The reasons that are often cited for the sluggish pace of digital transformation - a lack of time, money, or adequate expertise in the field - cannot be taken at face value. After all, many sectors such as mechanical engineering and plant construction have seen good profits in recent years. The period of economic cooling is now freeing up capacities need to cover the personnel costs of digital transformation projects. If necessary know-how and skills are lacking, they can be purchased at least for a time in the form of external consultants, who can then launch initial digital transformation projects and organize the transfer of knowledge.
A pivotal point in this regard is the business software used. According to a study by the market research institute Trovarit, ERP systems in mechanical and plant engineering companies are on average more than eleven years old. "They are from the time when the iPhone first saw the light of day and are incompatible with the requirements of today's digital workplace," says Bergmann. However, having a modern IT infrastructure is a prerequisite for having a sustainable business model in the future. There are now many ideas for digital transformation projects, especially in the mechanical and plant engineering field - including growing bills of materials, predictive maintenance and the integration of cloud technologies and external data sources into existing business processes.