Networked factories key to Daimler's productivity drive

Having standardized the layout of its factories and connected them to a shared computer network, Daimler (DAIGn.DE) is now crunching data from them to identify the most efficient way of making a car, its head of production told Reuters. Markus Schaefer said in an interview the analysis was at the heart of the luxury carmaker's drive to improve productivity, and in turn boost profit margins in its battle with German rivals BMW (BMWG.DE) and Audi (VOWG_p.DE). By using data from factories as far apart as Beijing in China and Tuscaloosa in the United States, and comparing it with German plants including Sindelfingen, Rastatt and Bremen, Daimler is introducing common standards and procedures in a bid to become more efficient.

Networked factories key to Daimler's productivity drive source: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/networked-factories-key-daimlers-productivity-153351837.html