MLC Research
Manufacturing’s Sustainability Challenge: The Race is On
Most manufacturing leaders see sustainability as essential, but progress must accelerate to meet Net Zero by 2050. The survey shows strong support, rising targets, and uneven progress across companies.
Pedal to the Metal
Manufacturers are accelerating M4.0 technology adoption and spending, especially for remote operations, but legacy system integration, security, ROI and change management remain major obstacles.
Growing Pains
Manufacturers see data’s potential to improve operations and predict disruptions, but most still struggle to collect, analyze, and apply it effectively. Survey findings show data mastery remains a work in progress.
Reimagining the Art of the Possible
COVID accelerated manufacturing’s shift to M4.0, making cybersecurity, analytics, and simulation top leadership priorities. Executives also face talent shortages and uncertainty about the digital roles and skills needed next.
COVID-19: A Catalyst for M4.0 Culture
COVID-19 accelerated manufacturers’ shift to M4.0, speeding digital adoption, collaboration, integration, and innovation. Survey results show the cultural changes are largely lasting despite ROI and buy-in challenges.
Fast Forward for Future Factories
COVID has accelerated M4.0 adoption across manufacturing, with over 40% of companies planning to speed up digital transformation long term. Manufacturers are also making lasting plant-floor health and safety changes.
COVID-19: An Unlikely Inspiration
Manufacturers are accelerating digital technology investments and remote operations tools as COVID-19 reveals that higher digital maturity improves crisis response.
The Reckoning
A Manufacturing Leadership Council survey finds COVID-19 accelerated M4.0 urgency, but many executives still lack the digital skills and leadership approach needed for data-driven manufacturing.
M4.0 Data Mastery: The Key to Future Competitiveness
Manufacturers expect explosive data growth and increasingly rely on advanced analytics, but many still lack tools, standards, and ROI models to turn data into competitive, predictive insights.
A Sober View of Future Factories
Manufacturers expect future factories to be hybrid environments mixing humans, robots, and digital and analog processes. More than 85% believe AI and machine learning will eventually enable self-learning facilities.
