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Men are from Mars and women are from Venus. The different perception of matters by different genders is frequently explained in such a simplified way. It all begins in childhood. If Kinect and Xbox are at the disposal of a girl, she will most probably use it as her personal fitness or dance instructor. Boys prefer something more combat-related or strategic. And how does it look when toys find their way into the hands of adults?

More than 2,500 participants worldwide – including the world elite met on January 20- 23, 2016 at the 46th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos. The automation of manufacturing and the onset of the new industrial revolution was the main agenda.

When Microsoft launched Kinect for the Xbox game console more than five years ago, there was strong evidence that it would be a breakthrough technology destined for success. A device that can use advanced infrared camera, sensors and microphones to track body movements, recognize facial expressions and details such as a clenched fist, allowing to control the game by movements and a voice was to become a major differentiator in the battle with PlayStation and Wii consoles.

15 years ago when I used to go on vacation by car, my wife navigated me with a map spread out on her lap. It meant that sometimes I didn’t know if I should take turn onto the nearest side street or if I should have turned at the previous intersection. Since the radio traffic service was the only dynamic information for us, we learned about traffic jams on the highway - usually when we were already stuck there; we also had no idea about speed traps.

Strategic line 4.0 INDUSTRY determine the future of the industry. It may be very futuristic. But there are companies which operate on the Industry 4.0 yet today. Smaller and medium-sized manufacturing companies it may still be considered a distant fiction, the consequences of the third industrial revolution over 100 years ago, still last.

The 2015 Production Management Conference, which focuses on performance improvement and the development of corporate culture, was held on November 3 and 4, 2015. IPA, one of the leading companies in Central Europe in the field of consulting, education, design and research for the industry was the organizer, and for the fifth consecutive year, ANASOFT was a significant partner.

In most manufacturing companies we encounter various IT acronyms – SCM, WMS, APS, ERP, MES, CMMS, SCADA, QMS... And most of us are confused. And that includes experienced production managers. First of all, they have to take care of stable production – to ensure that the products are of a good quality, supplied in a timely fashion, and properly manufactured. This takes time. No wonder selecting the IT system that is truly necessary to accomplish these goals is so difficult.

When you hear Tatramat, many people remember the automatic washing machines from the era before 1989 which were manufactured in the town of Poprad from the end of the 1970s. The relevance of the washing machine brand ended in the second half of the 1990s when Whirlpool became the 100% owner of the Poprad plant.

For the eighth time, the event entitled Digital Undertaking 2015 raised highly topical questions regarding industrial orientation and development, hot topics regarding the future of enterprises and upcoming changes in manufacturing. Many interesting presentations and accompanying events caught the attention of more than 170 experts. The report from this event was published in the journal Strojárenstvo (Engineering).

Every manager in a factory is aware of the fact that it is increasingly difficult to find unique selling points and competitive advantages in the manufacturing industry. The same raw materials and machinery can be bought by everybody for approximately the same price. Recruiting and training people are not easy tasks, but even in this respect no great differences can be expected. And thus, operations remain the main source of competitive advantage. The idea that the best organized company is the best company has applied since the times of Henry Ford.

The DIGITÁLNY PODNIK 2015 conference (2015 Digital Undertaking) was held on June 16 and 17, 2015. CEIT Group, which is involved in innovation and research, and TREND magazine were its organizers. ANASOFT conducted a survey about the needs and shortcomings among manufacturing companies based on a questionnaire that it distributed to conference participants at its presentation stand.