The Fourth Industrial Revolution

Historically the impacts of the different revolutions

Historically, the impacts of different industrial revolutions have always gone far beyond technology. Each of these revolutions has transformed entire systems, from their economic, social, political and even environmental aspects.

In this way, we attend three revolutions before the current one. Each of them changed the basic energy sources, the type of more dynamic industrial activities, their location in the territory and the means of communication available to move goods, people and information.

The first industrial revolution

which had its origin in England around 1786, leading to radical changes with respect to the means of production. Mechanical instruments of hydraulic and steam traction were introduced (the first steam engine of Boulton and Watt dates from 1774), the mechanical loom (first mechanized loom appeared in 1784) and the locomotive (first railway line between two cities took place in 1829) .

Second Industrial Revolution

Between 1870 and the First Great War the second industrial revolution broke out, again in England, although now incorporating Western Europe, the United States and Japan. The axes here were the development of a new industrial production model (first conveyor belt dated 1870), electricity (in 1871 the first thermal power plant is given), the electric focus (in 1880 Thomas Edison patents the focus), the automobile of internal combustion (in 1886 the first car is presented) and the radio transmitter (in 1897 the first of these occurs).

Third Industrial Revolution

The third industrial revolution, which some enlightened mind had well defined as the revolution of the "intelligent" elements, began to develop seven decades ago and promoted personal computers (in 1962 the first appear), information technology for Automate production (first programmable controller -PLC- dated 1969), aviation, space age, atomic energy, cybernetics and the Internet (Word Wide Web appears in 1990).

The Fourth Industrial Revolution

which we are immersed in, is no different. The mature technologies that will generate the turning point in the transformation of markets, productive systems, economics and even geopolitical hegemony are not yet - at least fully developed - in the market. Despite this, super-advanced robotics, the Internet of Things, data mining, Big Data, hyperconnectivity, artificial intelligence, 3D technologies, BIM platforms, smart energy, Smart Grid and Smart Cities, Biomedical technology or electric mobility, point to a new transformation of collective paradigms such as industrial, commerce, health and education, food production, social control or even the way we live in cities.