The 4th Industrial Revolution

“A revolution is an idea which has found its bayonets.” –Napoleon Bonaparte

It appears another revolution is upon us – namely, the 4th Industrial Revolution. It portends to turn the manufacturing industry on its head, and perhaps our economy, too. The first three industrial revolutions are seen now as huge economic events that propelled the world forward, but each caused incredible disruption with lasting ramifications for countries and communities.

The steam engine and the advent of large machines created the first industrial revolution, the assembly line and mass automation created a second. Computer technology created a third wave of innovation not too many years ago. The 4th Industrial Revolution is described on Wikipedia as a movement that will “equip all objects in the world with minuscule identifying devices or machine-readable identifiers that could transform daily life.” This presentation by Dassault Systems goes a bit deeper and touches on some of the trends that this revolution could bring.

What it will mean to our communities remains to be seen, but it is sure to have an impact on the entire global economy. If you have thoughts or examples of how this is already impacting our region, please let us know.

–Kenny McDonald

One Columbus Update

• We were fortunate to have the opportunity to continue our work in Washington, D.C. last week with the Brookings Global Cities Initiative sponsored by Chase bank, one of most important employers in the Columbus Region. Columbus is one of 20 regions selected to participate.
• Congratulations to Chase for launching their “New Skills at Work” initiative, which addresses the major international issue of closing the skills gap present in so many industries.