Commentary on Industry 4.0 that only focuses on the Internet of Things (IoT) entirely misses the point. Armed with IoT devices, manufacturers could improve productivity and time-to-market. However, only large and resourceful manufacturers can take advantage of these devices in their existing state. Smaller scale manufacturers who badly need these gains presently do not have the resources or ability to do so. IoT and CNC machines If you don't know what the Internet of Things and Industry 4.0 are, here is an article to get you started: "Industry 4.0 is the integration of the Internet of Things (IoT) and relevant physical technologies, including additive manufacturing, robotics, high-performance computing, artificial intelligence and cognitive technologies, advanced materials, and augmented reality, that complete the physical-to-digital-to-physical cycle." I recently spent the day with my co-founder at a major international exhibition of automated, Computer Numer