The decade in production: Innovations, trends and the future of manufacturing

The past decade has seen some remarkable gains in the manufacturing industry.

AI (Artificial Intelligence) and big data have created new machine capabilities and new job opportunities for highly skilled workers. 3D printing has revolutionized our ability to manufacture smaller numbers of products on a faster timeline. The ease of communication on a global scale has made collaborating with suppliers, producers, and product development firms around the world faster and simpler than ever before.

At the same time, U.S. manufacturers are facing a worrisome long-term skills shortage, while the trade war with China has made the short-term outlook for domestic companies uncertain.

I’ve seen these changes and developments first-hand during my 37 years as an executive for global manufacturing operations – most recently for a product design, development, and manufacturing firm.

So, how did we get here? What are some of the changes that have taken place in the manufacturing sector over the past 10 years, and how are they shaping the future of the industry? Let’s take a look.

Industrial robots have become far more intelligent

Industrial robots have been used to perform repetitive or dangerous tasks on factory floors for decades. These machines were usually enormous, heavy, and unsafe for humans to be close to.

New « cobots », however, which have become increasingly common in the past several years, are making human-robot collaboration a possibility. « Cobots » are slower, more agile, lighter weight, and capable of safely working next to their human colleagues.

These are just one example of how industrial robots are becoming far more finessed, capable of dealing not just with a large, heavy part like a car door, but with items that require more delicacy and fine-tuned handling.

The future is bright for robotics, too. According to the MIT Technology Review, a robot called Dactyl is teaching itself how to handle items – in this case, a toy block – while also incorporating randomness into its learning, to account for real-life variables like friction and the varying textures and physical properties of different materials.

Additive manufacturing has lowered cost barriers when it comes to prototyping and production

Although additive manufacturing, or 3D printing as it’s often popularly called, has been in use since the early 1980s, it’s only matured in the past decade.

Previously, the technology could only be used with certain types of plastics; now, metal parts, electronics, and even human tissues can be « printed ».

One process this technology has impacted is prototyping. Rapid prototyping lowers both the cost and the amount of time it takes to create a prototype, allowing companies to create multiple iterations of a product early on in the design process. Overall, this method can significantly speed up the product design timeline.

Additive manufacturing can also, in many cases, make it easier for companies to manufacture smaller

lots. Traditionally, companies had to commit to a run of, say, one thousand units for the cost-per-unit to make sense, creating a high barrier to entry for companies other than those that were highly well-capitalized.

Because making changes to a design that’s being 3D printed can be done using software — literally, with a series of clicks – rather than retooling an entire industrial machine, an entire world of additive manufacturing is being opened up to a new group of entrepreneurs, small businesses and midsize companies.

What does the future hold for the manufacturing sector?

The past decade has been a time of great innovation in manufacturing, but also a time of massive change.

It’s not just the technologies that are evolving. What consumers want, how businesses operate, even what manufacturers are really creating, in terms of physical products versus ways to access information and experiences – all of this is undergoing change.

In addition, manufacturing is hardly immune to the growing consumer demand for personalization. Today’s connected consumers want a unique, one-of-a-kind, personalized experience from the companies they interact with. That demand naturally travels up the supply chain to the facilities creating the products those consumers want.

Meeting these expectations requires an understanding and implementation of agile manufacturing processes, a system guided by flexibility and adaptive cooperation among small, interconnected teams. Adopting systems like additive manufacturing, which allow for small product runs that can be expanded, stopped, or changed quickly, is key.

In addition, a robust, distributed product data management system is essential to coordinate change orders, temporary change orders, supply issues, etc.

Likewise, consumers are demanding greater speed at every point in the purchase process. One only has to consider how Amazon’s two-day, one-day and same-day delivery has transformed the logistics industry to see just how great the change has been – and how much consumers have come to expect manufacturing and delivery speeds that would have been unthinkable just five years ago.

This is yet another reason agile processes are so vital for manufacturers. At the same time, manufacturers must become more involved in the logistics side of distribution more than perhaps ever before. If the manufacturer does not offer distribution itself, it’s important to find a distribution partner that utilizes agile processes and can guarantee shipping timelines. Each potential partner must go through a thorough vetting process by the manufacturer to ensure that they can deliver what they promise.

The past decade in production has seen some incredible innovations. However, I predict this coming decade will see developments that create even larger ripples across the sector, from technologies to the global distribution of suppliers, manufacturers, and distributors. Change is certain. The only question is whether manufacturers can pivot quickly enough to remain relevant.