SGS Maine Pointe Discusses How Manufacturing Can Benefit from the Metaverse

The metaverse, though it is still in its infancy, is already playing a major role in helping manufacturers develop innovations, as well as training today’s younger workforce. In the ManufacturingDIVE article, “The metaverse and manufacturing,” Kevin Krot, Head of Mobility and Industrial Products at SGS Maine Pointe, discusses just how manufacturers will benefit from this exciting virtual reality technology.

Krot foresees that metaverse technology will play a big role in training, especially as manufacturing industries face a workforce that is aging out. The technology will enable training in an environment that’s safer for workers and assets. At the same time workers will be able to quickly achieve the throughput, efficiency, and quality that is needed, he states.

In addition to preparing workers for the shop floor, the metaverse gives companies the ability to test out new innovations and processes before they hit the real world. They can uncover problems, find opportunities to reduce waste and increase efficiency, and fix any mistakes. Those benefits, Krot argues, can justify the help cost of metaverse technology and increase the speed of payback.

In fact, BMW is already using metaverse software to set up a virtual factory. They were able to optimize the logistics, layout, and robotics before the plan opened, reducing expensive experimentation in the real world.

Investment in this technology is important, Krot states, even though “it’s going to be maybe a five-year or more payback.” He adds, “You have to have that long-term vision.”