What will the plant of the future look like ?

Fives is an engineering group which designs factories for numerous industrial sectors. It created a think-tank, the Fives' Observatory for the Plants of the Future‚ which fosters discussion about the future of industry. Fives also jointly manages the French government’s ‘plant of the future’ plan‚ one of thirty-four plans in its ‘New Industrialised France’ initiative. In fact, the ‘plant of the future’ already exists : many technologies are developed and ready, and have already been implemented. We now have to distribute them throughout France’s industrial fabric, especially in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The key question remains the role man will play in this new industrial landscape. Will he be thrown out of the plant and replaced by an excessive number of machines ? Or will his presence be necessary, not only to supervise and control the machines but because man, unlike machines, is creative and innovative ? Such is the opinion of Michel Dancette, the Innovation & Corporate Insight Director at Fives.