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The future of Manufacturing: 5 key trends to watch out for in 2024
Technological advancements, climate change, and geopolitical tensions have transformed the global manufacturing landscape in recent decades. Along the way, academics and industry experts have explored concepts such as Industry 4.0 which encompasses the industrial internet of things, and ‘smart’ manufacturing, to help define the multitude of ways in which technological innovation has changed manufacturing processes.
In parallel, ‘advanced manufacturing’ encompasses many complementary developments in the manufacturing field during this time, including high- tech products and processes and clean, green, and flexible manufacturing. It also incorporates the significance of a high-performance workforce in creating an agile production system that can flex between mass production and custom manufacturing in response to customer demand.
As we look ahead to 2024, Carl Haycock, UK Operations Director, Domino Printing Sciences, considers what the
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next phase of change will have in store, and identifies five key trends to monitor for the year ahead.
Digital Tools for Optimisation
Digital tools, including cloud computing and automation, are increasingly used to enable real-time insights and optimisation across production facilities, helping manufacturers improve efficiency, reduce waste, and increase resilience.
Contrary to the perception of many manufacturers, digitisation does not have to be embraced in an ‘eat the elephant whole’ style approach. Indeed, by targeting specific areas of the production process in a bite-sized manner with readily accessible digital tools, common and costly production issues can be easily addressed, helping to improve overall production efficiency.
For example, the simple addition of automated coding solutions and vision inspection systems can enable businesses to streamline product
changeovers, limit manual data entry, optimise quality control of products and coding, and improve reporting – all of which can facilitate the acquisition of more information about production processes and a better understanding of production lines, which in turn can pave the way for more creative solutions in the future.
Automation for Manufacturing Resilience
We’ve seen our fair share of volatility over the last few years, with manufacturers struggling to remain productive while faced with shrinking margins and consumers feeling the pinch of higher prices and longer lead times. In this climate, it’s become increasingly apparent that automation tools are proving increasingly valuable in helping manufacturers to add operational resilience to production processes.
From managing labour and skills shortages and redeploying existing workers into value-added improvement
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