Farnell to host Industry 4.0 live Q&A webinar

The benefits to Industry 4.0 and Industrial IoT are widely recognised: Reducing downtime, improving energy efficiency and increasing productivity, whilst lowering costs collectively offers significant benefits for manufacturers.

However, the principles of Industry 4.0 can be complex and knowing where and how to begin is challenging, which is why this Industry 4.0 live Q&A webinar aims to provide solutions for:

• Retrofitting legacy systems
• Managing and interpreting data
• Addressing a skills gap in the workforce

Panel members discussing these key topics and the latest technology available to the industry include:

Simon Meadmore, VP, Product & Supplier Management, Farnell

Simon joined Farnell in 2004 and has over 30 years’ experience in the electronics industry. Earlier in his career he worked for CEMs and OEMs before managing product portfolios across Interconnect, Electromechanical, Passives and Semiconductors at Farnell. Simon has been in his current role as VP, Product & Supplier Management since 2021 and is significantly expanding Farnell's product proposition within the Industrial space.

Marcus Stein, Solution Architect - Business Development, Eaton

Marcus studied automation technology in Frankfurt, Germany and has over 30 years’ experience in the field of applications/solutions.  He began initially as an applications engineer for national and international projects, before moving into international sales. Marcus now works as a Solution Architect supporting sales internationally with the development of customer solutions.

Jan Koudijzer, Market & Technology Development Manager, Festo

After graduating as a mechanical engineer at the Delft University of Technology, Jan has spent his entire career working in robotics/mechatronics and Industry 4.0 topics including 10 years at the CIM Centre Delft (owned by TU Delft, Siemens and Andersen Consulting), followed by 27 years at Festo.

Az Baksh, International Sales Manager, Auer Signal

Az started his professional career as a repair & calibration engineer, before moving into technical hardware and software sales in the measurement equipment sector. Primarily working in international channel management, implementing joint strategies with global distribution partners. Now at Auer Signal, his focus is on Industrial Automation and how signaling solutions are incorporated in an automated environment.

Commented Simon Meadmore, “Events like our Q&A are invaluable in helping to address some of the challenges customers may have and will help inform them how to successfully get on a path to industry 4.0. We are delighted to be joined by partner organisations Festo, Eaton, and Auer Signal and we look forward to engaging with as many attendees as possible in what I am sure will be a fascinating and informative live event.”