New State of Smart Manufacturing Study Finds Over 40% of Manufacturers Struggle to Outpace Competitors

Global survey reveals impact of smart manufacturing technology on maximizing data insights, attracting talent, and minimizing risks to supply chain, quality, and cybersecurity

Rockwell Automation, the world’s largest company dedicated to industrial automation and digital transformation, announced the results of the 8^th annual “State of Smart Manufacturing Report.” The global study surveyed more than 1,350 manufacturers across 13 of the leading manufacturing countries.

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This year’s report reveals a focus on delivering profitable growth without sacrificing quality, an emphasis on accessing data’s true potential, and increasing adoption of technology to build resilience, enable agility, increase sustainability, and address workforce challenges.

Key global findings include:

• Twice as many manufacturers believe their organization lacks the technology needed to outpace the competition, as compared to 2022.
• 4 out of 5 manufacturers still lack an end-to-end supply chain planning solution.
• Cybersecurity risks rank highest as the obstacle respondents are looking to mitigate with smart manufacturing initiatives.
• 45% of manufacturers cite “improving quality” as the main positive outcome they want to achieve with smart manufacturing initiatives.
• 89% of manufacturers plan to maintain or grow employment due to technology adoption. Additionally, 36% of respondents believe they will be able to repurpose existing workers due to their increasing use of technology.
• Of the 95% of manufacturers who have formal or informal ESG policies in place, 42% cite “improving efficiencies” as the top driving factor for pursuing ESG initiatives.

“Manufacturers are continuing to seek opportunities for profitable growth but are realizing that uncertainty in workforce availability is impacting quality, along with their ability to meet evolving customer needs,” said Veena Lakkundi, senior vice president, Corporate Strategy and Development, Rockwell Automation. “The survey found that smart manufacturing technology is enabling manufacturers of all sizes to optimize more resilient, agile, and sustainable solutions that accelerate transformation. If we’ve learned anything from history, it’s that organizations that invest in innovation, with a bias for action, during times of uncertainty can outpace competitors.”

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Based on the survey findings, technology is crucial to mitigating risk and delivering growth. However, for one-third of manufacturers, the range of available systems and platforms is leading to “technology paralysis” – an inability to decide between solutions. Manufacturers can overcome this indecision by choosing a partner with relevant industry expertise and experience who can advise and guide them in implementing a fit-for-purpose solution to achieve desired outcomes.

“At Rockwell, we combine the power of our portfolio of industry solutions with our second-to-none partner ecosystem to serve as a trusted advisor to leading companies around the world,” said Lakkundi. “As the biggest company focused solely on industrial automation and digital transformation, we work to make the complex simple and meet companies where they are in their journeys.”

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