Uploaded July 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
The idea of a modular factory brings to mind something space age and futuristic, with the ability to rapidly adapt and scale production systems through a network of connected shops providing different services yet, to achieve that, there are many real challenges to overcome. From quality to the human factor, creating a modular factory that can meet the demands of modern product design is no easy task.
In this episode, host Conor Peick is joined by Alastair Orchard to discuss what it takes to ensure a modular factory concept is up to the task of creating a high quality product as well as the importance of combining both advanced digitalization concepts with human in the loop elements to achieve an ideal result.
In the episode you’ll learn about:
(0:18) How to maintain quality in a modular factory
(3:28) The importance of AI and the Digital Twin
(7:06) The human factor in flexible production
About the voices:
Alastair Orchard is the head of Digital Enterprise Thought Leadership for Siemens Digital Industries, working with multinationals to become more flexible, cost effective, transparent, collaborative organizations, and to bring their world-class products to market faster than their competitors. He is also the co-founder and CTO of dimax.cloud (http://dimax.cloud) - a distributed manufacturing platform that cuts the cost, carbon and complexity from supply chains. Conor Peick is a Marketing Professional creating forward-looking content for the Thought Leadership team at Siemens Digital Industries Software. Conor collaborates with industry experts and executives to produce impactful content exploring the challenges companies face and the technologies that can provide solutions.
The idea of a modular factory brings to mind something space age and futuristic, with the ability to rapidly adapt and scale production systems through a network of connected shops providing different services yet, to achieve that, there are many real challenges to overcome. From quality to the human factor, creating a modular factory that can meet the demands of modern product design is no easy task.
In this episode, host Conor Peick is joined by Alastair Orchard to discuss what it takes to ensure a modular factory concept is up to the task of creating a high quality product as well as the importance of combining both advanced digitalization concepts with human in the loop elements to achieve an ideal result.
In the episode you’ll learn about:
(0:18) How to maintain quality in a modular factory
(3:28) The importance of AI and the Digital Twin
(7:06) The human factor in flexible production
About the voices:
Alastair Orchard is the head of Digital Enterprise Thought Leadership for Siemens Digital Industries, working with multinationals to become more flexible, cost effective, transparent, collaborative organizations, and to bring their world-class products to market faster than their competitors. He is also the co-founder and CTO of dimax.cloud (http://dimax.cloud) - a distributed manufacturing platform that cuts the cost, carbon and complexity from supply chains. Conor Peick is a Marketing Professional creating forward-looking content for the Thought Leadership team at Siemens Digital Industries Software. Conor collaborates with industry experts and executives to produce impactful content exploring the challenges companies face and the technologies that can provide solutions.
