In the coming years, two technologies will play an important role in the digital transformation of the manufacturing and process industries: Augmented reality (AR) and machine learning (ML). Various studies report that these technologies will continue to develop at a rapid pace and will be deployed on an increasingly large scale. With AR, users can interact with the production environment via a screen or glasses, on which what they see in real life is supplemented with digital information. With ML, production machines gain access to data that allow them to learn, make connections and control actions independently, which, in the past, was the sole prerogative of humans. In short, AR and ML are two promising technologies with different characteristics that can be applied in production. At the same time, it is quite possible that AR features will be enhanced by ML, for example by personalising the AR experience.

Hellebrekers keeps a close eye on Industry 4.0 developments in tech. Our goal is to be pioneers in industrial automation, which means we are constantly on the lookout for new opportunities to further optimise process automation. By doing so, we contribute to the growth of a high-tech manufacturing industry in the Netherlands. Hellebrekers has launched its own innovation programme, in which we focus on innovative insights and applications of state-of-the-art technologies. As part of this programme, we are currently working on spectacular industrial applications of AR and ML.