A Digital First Mindset for Manufacturers

Follow these five steps to enable planning, collaboration and investments in talent and technology that are vital to digital transformation.   

TAKEAWAYS:
● Manufacturing companies must invest now in digital infrastructure to collect and analyze data for insights, optimization and quality improvement.
● Embracing automation will enhance efficiency and free up employees for more complex tasks.
● Collaborate with partners and invest in talent development while prioritizing cybersecurity to protect your organization’s digital assets.  

The Challenge

Digital operations and data analysis are transforming the future of manufacturing. We are already seeing examples of the power of digital and data to inform, automate, and improve manufacturing processes from strategic planning to execution. Companies incorporating digital capabilities have proven efficiency gains (think constraint management, overall equipment effectiveness (OEE), quality, predictive maintenance, compliance), but will also see strategic advantage in becoming more formidable in on-going battles related to the dwindling manufacturing labor pool, demand and supply volatilities, and the overarching pervasive need to find levers to support growth or maintain already tight margins. But for most manufacturing companies, delving into digital is easier said than done with common hurdles including technical debt, reluctance to change and ineffective data management.

Operating in a digital age starts with letting go of legacy systems, processes and ways of working. But even the biggest manufacturing companies are burdened by technical debt, with outmoded systems that are incompatible with modern digital technologies. This can make it difficult to integrate new solutions into existing data, workflows and processes.

Beyond technical debt, employees can be wary of adopting new digital technologies due to a lack of understanding or fear of job loss. This can slow the adoption of digital solutions and hinder organizations’ ability to innovate.

Another complication is data management. Manufacturing companies generate vast amounts of data from machines, products and customers. However, this data is often siloed and not easily accessible or usable. This can make it difficult to gain insights into customer needs and preferences, optimize production processes, and improve product quality.

So, how do manufacturers prepare for the digital future?

Five Steps for Digital Success in Manufacturing

To shed legacy systems, bring employees on board and do more with data, it is important to invest in digital infrastructure supporting digital information systems. This will enable the collection and analysis of data from machines, products and customers to gain insight into customer needs and preferences, optimize production processes and improve product quality.

Alongside this, embracing automation will reduce costs, improve efficiency and increase productivity. By automating repetitive tasks, manufacturers can free up their employees to focus on more complex tasks that require human skills. But doing this requires careful planning, collaboration and targeted investment in talent and technology.

1.  Assess the current state of digital readiness
To achieve digital success, it is vital for manufacturing companies to assess their current state of digital readiness. This all-important gap assessment helps organizations’ leadership teams to identify areas and opportunities for improvement. With this knowledge in mind, leaders can begin to prioritize their efforts and allocate resources more effectively. When selecting the most critical areas for improvement, success will be more likely when these improvement areas align with business goals and customer needs. This will help them focus their efforts on initiatives that have the greatest impact.