Digitising European Industry – Reaping the full benefits of a Digital Single Market

Yesterday the European Commission set out today the path to ensure European Industry reaps the full benefits of the a Digital Single Market by unveiling its plans to help European industry, SMEs, researchers and public authorities make the most of new technologies.

Yesterday the European Commission set out today the path to ensure European Industry reaps the full benefits of the a Digital Single Market by unveiling its plans to help European industry, SMEs, researchers and public authorities make the most of new technologies.

These measures aim to support and link up national initiatives for the digitisation of industry and related services across all sectors and to boost investment through strategic partnerships and networks. There is also a commitment speed up the development of common standards in priority areas, such as 5G communication networks or cybersecurity, and to modernise public services.

European industry has not yet reaped the full benefits or been quick to take up digital technologies which is key to ensuring continued global competitiveness especially in industries such as construction, agro-food, textiles and steel. Several EU Member States have already launched strategies to support the digitisation of industry. But a comprehensive approach at European level is needed to avoid fragmented markets and to reap the benefits of digital evolutions such as the internet of things. In order to be able to the support this transition the Commission is comitting to:

• help coordinate national and regional initiatives on digitising industry by maintaining a continuous EU-wide dialogue with all actors involved. A governance framework will be set up with Member States and industry.
• focus investments in EU’s public-private partnerships and strongly encourage the use of the opportunities offered by the EU Investment Plan and European Structural and Investment Funds.
• invest €500 million in a pan-EU network of digital innovation hubs (centres of excellence in technology) where businesses can obtain advice and test digital innovations.
• set up large-scale pilot projects to strengthen internet of things, advanced manufacturing and technologies in smart cities and homes, connected cars or mobile health services.
• adopt future-proof legislation that will support the free flow of data and clarify ownership of data generated by sensors and smart devices. The Commission will also review rules on safety and liability of autonomous systems.
• present an EU skills agenda that will help give people the skills needed for jobs in the digital age.

The European cloud initiative also forms part of this package and will help Europe lead in the data-driven economy. This initative is an exciting breakthrough as it will, as a first objective, will give Europe’s 1.7 million researchers and 70 million science and technology professionals a virtual environment to store, manage, analyse and re-use a big amount of research data.

Read more about digitising European Industry here and join the #DigitiseEU debate on Twitter.