50% of the Top 10 Workforce Challenges Facing Manufacturers are People Related

Global technology intelligence firm ABI Research recently completed its 2024 Manufacturers’ Technology Adoption & Attitudes Survey, a comprehensive survey of 461 manufacturing decision-makers across the United States, Malaysia, and Germany with the aim to uncover real-world attitudes, adoption trends, and valuable insights that reflect the current technological landscape within the manufacturing industry. According to the resulting report, The State of Technology in the Manufacturing Industry, one topline takeaway is that 50% of manufacturers' top ten workforce challenges are people-related.

“An interesting find from the survey is that some of the biggest issues for manufacturers involve people, not technology. Recruiting, retaining, and upskilling staff are among the top challenges manufacturers face today. Skilled individuals are required to operate and maintain equipment while also focusing on optimizing production lines. Simply put, there aren’t enough of these individuals in the workforce today,” explains Michael Larner, Distinguished Analyst at ABI Research.

Other high-level findings from The State of Technology in the Manufacturing Industry report:

• 76% of manufacturers surveyed agree that the cloud can foster real-time collaboration with key stakeholders to streamline supply chain coordination. U.S. manufacturers are less enthused about cloud computing’s ability to improve efficiency via scalability than their German and Malaysian counterparts.
• 74% of manufacturers agree/strongly agree that private cellular provides the reliability and security needed to streamline manufacturing operations.
• While U.S. and Malaysian firms rank new tech vulnerabilities (e.g., cloud, AI, etc.) as the top cyber risk facing their organization, German firms ranked data breach/theft as their top concern.
• 78% of respondents believe that generative AI’s most common use case is to more quickly identify the root cause of a production issue.
• 79% of respondents agree that the industrial metaverse can aid new product development. For German and Malaysian firms, new product design was the top use case of the industrial metaverse. In the US, the top use case was staff training and upskilling.
• While IT and OT departments must work together to tackle challenges, just 39% of respondents stated that their IT and OT teams collaborate to solve issues.
• 23% of U.S., 22% of Malaysian, and 18% of German Manufacturers agree that supporting sustainability goals is a priority.
• 17% of manufacturers are considering commercial drone deployments in the next 12 months, indicating significant interest in this robotics technology. Manufacturers are also evaluating Proofs of Concepts (18%), evaluating suppliers (23%), or devising implementation programs (9%).

“Innovation is the cornerstone of success in the manufacturing Industry, and making a robust technology strategy is essential. The survey results are arming technology vendors and end users with real-world and current technology attitudes, adoption rates, and insights to gain a competitive advantage in the rapidly evolving industrial and manufacturing landscape,” Larner concludes.

Download the report, The State of Technology in the Manufacturing Industry, for Survey highlights.