Industry 4.0 is here to stay. To remain competitive, heat treaters must take steps toward adopting automated and interconnected technologies, data analysis, intelligent systems, computer-based algorithms, machine learning, and autonomous decision-making. Predictive maintenance capabilities are particularly critical to heat treating operations. This paper provides background on Industry 4.0 and its relevance to the heat treating industry. It describes the small, incremental actions that can be taken to implement technologies for monitoring and managing heat treating operations, gathering and analyzing data sets, and fostering innovation among personnel.