Capgemini and SAP SE have announced the broadening of their strategic partnership with the launch of Fast Digital 4 Discrete Industries by SAP and Capgemini, a joint initiative to help clients in the discrete manufacturing industries to manage their digital transformation as they seek to maximize the potential of Industry 4.0, the Internet-of-Things and innovative manufacturing techniques. With manufacturers in a global race to maintain and grow their competitive advantage, the potential benefits of organizational transformation by using the latest digital technologies such as real-time tracking, 3D modeling and visualization, the Internet-of-Things or connected objects are widely recognized. However, these technologies are not easy to put in place and deploy on a large scale in order to deliver expected benefits.

The initiative aims to address these challenges by combining SAP's market-leading suite of digital solutions with Capgemini's global expertise in consulting, insights and data, cloud and digital manufacturing. Capgemini will also utilize an agile model for business transformation based on its renowned Digital Transformation Framework specifically tailored for the manufacturing industry and spanning the exploration, design and development of specific solutions to enable new business models and scenarios. Olivier Sevillia, Member of the Group Executive Board and Group Head of Digital Services.

Capgemini and SAP plan to co-innovate and invest jointly in order to develop new applications and extensions on SAP HANA Cloud Platform, as well as engage with an ecosystem of start-ups and vendors in the manufacturing space to provide clients with end-to-end solutions. Further, this initiative intends to help manufacturers create smart, connected products, assets and operations that offer the potential for time-to-market reduction, productivity gains, cost savings, new revenue streams and new business models.