We show you how the process industry can discover and unleash its greatest digital potential? Become digitally ready now!
Summary: Biotechnology is booming, but long development cycles and routine tasks hamper progress and cause high costs. Digitalization, especially through ERP systems, can structure and accelerate processes to work more efficiently and speed up time to market. It is crucial for the future of the industry.
A new vaccine in just a few months: the mechanisms of biotechnology have made this possible. From working with plant genomes to the development of enzymes and aromatics, the biotechnology sector is booming. Structuring and digitizing elaborate and complex processes are the current challenges facing biotech companies. Long development cycles hamper progress and cause high costs. Tedious routine tasks are typical time wasters that reduce resources for research and development. In order to remain successful, biotech companies are dependent on innovative ideas and a rapid market launch. Efficiency must increase. But how?
The key is digitalization. It has all the potential to simplify processes and reduce their complexity. The trend is pointing towards digital processes, but what is the current status and where is the future heading? Why are digital processes groundbreaking for the biotechnology sector and how can they be implemented? We will find answers to these and other questions.
Digital tools and processes can already be found in the biotechnology sector today. An ERP system often makes this possible. It is the digital basis for automating your own merchandise management. A good example? Warehouse and logistics. Regardless of the type of product, ERP solutions make it possible to handle storage, organization and shipping digitally. The benefits are clear: faster results, fewer errors due to manual handling and more efficient work as the bottom line. However, these examples can ultimately be applied to any industry. For biotechnology, there are more specific areas of application that can be summarized as a digital laboratory. What these are differs from company to company. But what makes it a digitalized biotech laboratory? Some trends are becoming increasingly recognizable:
Smart lab, connected lab or networked lab. The term refers to a laboratory environment in which devices, instruments and systems are connected to and with each other. The purpose: information and data can be exchanged seamlessly and collected and evaluated at central points. Efficiency and accuracy increase, productivity rises: because companies in the biotechnology sector can coordinate their research and laboratory processes more easily and process data more quickly thanks to the networked laboratory, they not only achieve more precise results, but also faster ones. What is still missing is the appropriate analysis. This is particularly complex with large amounts of data, as is the case in biotechnology. Analysis tools such as Microsoft Power BI help to filter the essential statements and present them in a meaningful way.
Another option that facilitates the networked laboratory: remote monitoring and remote control. It is not always necessary for people to be on site to find or rectify a fault. Augmented reality and the use of smart glasses make such processes easier and companies are able to act more quickly. Even better: thanks to predictive maintenance, a digital system reports anomalies before a problem arises. In plain language, this means that biotech companies can maintain equipment and improve processes, avoiding breakdowns and the associated loss of efficiency.
Miniaturization is a process in which existing structures are reduced in size. However, their function and, in some cases, their form are retained. Too abstract? An example from the world of leisure: whereas in the past a separate device was needed for making phone calls, taking photos and listening to music, these functions are now performed by a single device, the smartphone. In the context of biotechnology, this approach can be applied to research. Miniaturization is used particularly in the areas of strain and process development and increases the number of experimental and analytical steps enormously. The result: development and product cycles are significantly accelerated and require fewer and fewer resources. In order to successfully enable miniaturization, companies must rely on automation and digitalization. They are the basis for being able to implement the reduction in steps. In practice, lab glasses and laboratory robotics systems are often used to increase the speed of work and automate tasks such as cell cultivation.
Big data, i.e. the handling of large amounts of data, and data mining, i.e. the automated analysis of data, have become indispensable in the digital age. Machine learning, i.e. the ability of a machine to learn on its own and expand existing knowledge, also comes from this segment. They are also used in the biotechnology sector, as they make it possible to test different drug candidates in parallel. The chance of finding the right active ingredient increases. Data mining processes are based on artificial intelligence, which is able to evaluate data not only quickly but also accurately. If knowledge is also increased through machine learning, the benefits increase further. The time savings are enormous. For companies in the biotech sector, big data and data mining can represent a major competitive advantage - after all, time and speed are two of the most important parameters for success. And the analysis? Here, too, business intelligence comes into play. Microsoft Power BI fulfills the criteria for simple analyses at the click of a mouse.
Also already in use today in the biotech sector: bioprinting. Special 3D printers make it possible to build biomaterials such as organs from tissue or cells. The principle is very similar to traditional 3D printing, as organic substances are placed on top of each other layer by layer until a three-dimensional object is created.
Virtual biotechnology is used when molecular reactions or combinations as well as substances are to be simulated on the computer. In technical terms, this is referred to as in silico simulation, i.e. a process that takes place purely on the computer. In biotechnology, it is used to clarify biochemical processes in living organisms, mainly body cells of human organs.
Personalized medicine is generally more a part of the medical device and pharmaceutical industries. However, the topic is also becoming increasingly important in the biotech sector, under the heading of biopharmaceuticals. These are medicines that have been produced on a biotechnological basis. They are highly modern and offer new treatment options that are intended to treat serious, sometimes even life-threatening diseases. One technique used in this context is CRISPR-CAS technology. This is a molecular biology process in which a DNA strand is specifically cut at a predefined point. DNA building blocks can then be inserted, switched off or modified at the cut site as required. Important potential in the biotechnology sector that will shape the future of human medicine in the long term.
Software: a must in the course of digitalization, which as such also creates enormous potential for biotechnology. ERP solutions are particularly helpful for companies, as they offer digital possibilities at almost all process levels - including specifically for biotechnology.
From financial accounting and warehouse receiving to lot tracking: The right function for biotechnology is available in our Yaveon 365 industry-specific ERP solution.
It has become clear: Digitalization with all its facets is already an integral part of the biotechnology industry. The question now is how a company can benefit from it. Why should biotech companies make sure they don't miss the boat and instead move forward? Some key benefits of digitization in the biotech industry are:
Personalized medicine thanks to genetic data, new development opportunities for active ingredients and shorter research cycles: all these possibilities not only make it possible to make more targeted diagnoses, but also to implement individual treatments. Instead of spreading water over a large area like a watering can, drugs are used that are specifically tailored to the disease and the individual patient. The aim is to treat illnesses more efficiently and successfully and ultimately save lives.
Research is conducted all over the world, with the brightest minds and latest equipment spread across the globe. In the past, this meant that each research team cooked its own soup. Exchange and collaboration were only possible with a great deal of effort and patience. Today, thanks to digitalization, researchers can come together electronically, regardless of their location. Tools such as Microsoft Teams, mail programs such as Outlook and numerous other communication platforms are transforming a diversified research landscape into a common basis. Cloud solutions are important here. They are the key to mobile working and cross-location collaboration. An ERP system that is equipped for the future should therefore be cloud-ready. Whether a private or public cloud solution is more suitable for a company is always a case-by-case decision.
The third major benefit that digitalization brings to biotechnology results from location-independent collaboration: by making it easier to share experiences, ideas and data, the development cycle is reduced and innovations reach the market faster. Simplified data analyses and simulations also make research work faster - another focus that ensures that new findings can be obtained more quickly. Suitable functions can also be found in ERP or a suitable industry-specific ERP solution. R&D modules facilitate the development and management of recipes and parts lists, enable targeted production releases and take product characteristics into account. A winning combination.
The time required is reduced, efficiency increases and manual deviations are reduced: what sounds like a dream is made possible by automation and robotics for production. Repetitive tasks lend themselves to being carried out by robots. As they have no routine and therefore avoid the classic careless error or misunderstanding, the error rate is reduced. Employees also save time, which they can use more effectively for their actual tasks in production scheduling, production control or elsewhere.
Manual checks are good, but prone to errors. Why? Mindless repetition, distraction and your own well-being have a huge impact on your ability to concentrate. Robots and sensors work according to set patterns; there are no deviations. The trick behind it: the Internet of Things, IoT. It uses sensors to establish the relevant connections between devices and reports any need for action. A typical example: a refrigerator that uses sensors to detect that a carton of milk is missing and automatically reorders it. In biotechnology, errors are avoided, production and laboratory processes can be reliably monitored and the result meets the highest quality standards.
The secret to successful business processes is good planning. Digital tools in general and software such as enterprise resource planning solutions in particular help you to get the most out of them. They not only compile company data and digital workflows centrally, but also initiate these and work steps. Business and laboratory processes are more targeted, resources are allocated better and operations run with better results. Low-code software such as the Microsoft Power Platform is another way of efficiently representing workflows digitally. The toolbox focuses on ancillary processes that are tedious and time-consuming and are therefore ideal for automation. Low-code technology is a major benefit, as users can implement the use cases themselves without having to be programming experts.
Digitalization has already arrived in the biotechnology industry. Networked laboratories, miniaturization and artificial intelligence are helping companies to simplify their day-to-day work and look to the future with optimism. The results are clear to see: faster processes and development cycles, new treatment methods and safe workflows that leave more time for the actual tasks are impressive at first glance. These mechanisms have already changed the role of humans in laboratories and production, supported by automation systems such as robots. The focus is shifting from action to control.
If we look to the future, we can see scenarios in which robots take over the actual work completely or augmented reality supports the completion of tasks. Employees will be responsible for the final evaluation of information and quality and will therefore be the decision-making authority. Everything is pointing towards the digital future. In order to successfully implement this in your own company, managers are called upon. Work processes must be consolidated. A culture of collaboration must develop in which teams use the right digital tools. The big goal: scientific breakthroughs. Broken down to your own company, this means remaining competitive in order to be successful and at the top in the long term. And who wouldn't want that?
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