“Manufacturing in the United States has been on a 50-year downward trend as firms have offshored production. With a loss of more than 30% of manufacturing jobs since 1970 and the sector’s share of GDP shrinking from 27% to 12%, U.S. manufacturers may be forgiven for thinking the future is one of either moving production overseas or, if one is a small- or medium-sized firm unable to offshore, folding operations altogether.”
Forgiven, perhaps, but perhaps not correct, according to Charles Johnson-Bey, Ph.D., Co-Principal Investigator, Engineering Research Visioning Alliance (ERVA); Senior Vice President, Booz Allen Hamilton. Writing in this week’s featured Industry Today article, Johnson-Bey details the conclusions of Engineering the Future of Distributed Manufacturing, the findings of 56 small- to medium-sized manufacturing companies and leading researchers and technical experts to identify critical areas for engineering research in distributed manufacturing.
Distributed manufacturing is defined as the use of technology by U.S. industry to:
- Maximize materials supply chain flexibility and sustainability
- Create tools and processes than can be used anywhere, in any lot size, without loss of quality
- Improve the the efficiency of production processes to reduce downtime, optimize inventory management, and improve service and product quality
To accomplish this, manufacturers and engineers need to take five actions:
- Engineer new, sustainable materials for use in advanced manufacturing.
- Enable new business models that better manage supply chains to build resilience, minimize disruption, and reduce wasted time and materials.
- Design next-generation machines that are small, agile, and reconfigurable.
- Create common, effective, and affordable standards for data collection, analysis, and communication.
- Develop greater connectivity across the sector and work to eliminate silos.
According to Johnson-Bey, “U.S. manufacturing can have a strong future – but it will require innovative vision and cross-functional, cross-industry collaboration to survive and thrive. ERVA’s latest report is a call to action on that front, and one America’s manufacturers should heed.”
Read the complete article, Engineering a Better Future for U.S. Manufacturing.
How is your organization preparing for its supply chain future? Share your ideas and experiences with your Industry Today community. Please see our editorial guidelines
Read more about me or visit my Signitt.
Tags: supply chain, ERVA, future of manufacturing, Susan Poeton, #SusanPoeton, #SuePoeton, Sue Poeton, Industry Today
Susan Poeton 