The manufacturing industry has gone through challenging times in the last decade: due in part, to the recession of 2008 and the evolution of artificial intelligence, robotics, and cloud computing to name, but just a few. The manufacturing sector is however, not monolithic, some segments are service based, while others are process including; food production-based, heavy printing, discrete and the list goes on.
In her article for one of the sectors leading publication, Industry Week, titled, The Future of Manufacturing, Becky Morgan writes;
“So what does the future hold for manufacturing? That is a particularly poignant question today, with headlines dominated by protectionism, EU and Brexit, cyber criminals, and immigration and environmental debates. Moreover, the economics of the manufacturing industry are changing right now. The economic life of intellectual property is falling while the dynamism of materials science explodes. Digitization is everywhere, which enables the 3-D printer to increasingly meet the “I want it, and I want it now” aspect of demand. New distribution channels are evolving, influenced by the need for cost reduction and the expectation of immediate supply.
Remember RIM/Blackberry, which made the mistake of saying their phones were for serious business while smartphones were toys? Sony has a similar story with its once-ubiquitous Walkman. Kodak was busy hiring chemical engineers as they wasted the patent on digital photography. Now we can print small parts, production volumes of large parts, and homes with 3D printers. That evolution took over 30 years. Internet of Things is descriptive of the growing reliance on capture, movement and analysis of data to better understand customers, product performance, and equipment status. That evolution is well underway. The next evolution will soon begin.”
It’s worth noting that manufacturing has had to endure a lot of change and yet, it remains, a driving force in many advanced and developing countries. And, in the world of continuous cloud-based applications, the Internet of Things (IoT), machine learning and all things digital, the future looks bright for the manufacturing business leaders who willing embrace these changes.
To learn more about ATS and its Time and Attendance for Manufacturing, go to our website, where you can download a demonstration, or register for a bi-monthly webinar. To reach us by phone, call: 866.294.2467.
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