As we veer further into uncertainty, how can manufacturers stay – or transform into – lean, mean resilience machines? … What advice is out there? Can Einstein help? What is Lego doing? Can a sci-fi writer offer clarity? Is Gen AI able to offer answers? … Read all about it in our regular round-up of manufacturing-related news.
“How do you keep up?”
Get Agile With It
Pity the manufacturer. More than most, they face unprecedented challenges from geopolitical tensions, trade disputes, and regional conflicts – and must face down wobbly supply chains, increased costs, and market uncertainties. Meanwhile, AI technologies morph by the minute. How do you keep up?
To compensate, forward-thinking manufacturers must build greater resilience and agility into their operations—which, of course, is easier said than done. Happily, many smart people are out there offering quality advice.
“In the less volatile world of the not-so-distant past, increasing globalization provided a relatively straightforward growth playbook. Now, that unique political and economic environment is gone.”
Consultancies Say: Tap Into The Knowledge
Consultancies like McKinsey continue to pump out reports (though this industry also faces uncertainties).
For instance, according to the EY report ‘How Manufacturers Can Adapt For Success Amid Rising Geopolitical Uncertainty’, manufacturers should make some “no regret” moves, such as:
1. Enhancing scenario-planning capabilities
2. Investing in the business of customer experience
3. Driving operational resiliency
4. Creating a differentiated employee value proposition
5. Accelerating digitalization
In short: “In the less volatile world of the not-so-distant past, increasing globalization provided a relatively straightforward growth playbook. Now, that unique political and economic environment is gone. Going forward, successfully defending against emerging threats and seizing new opportunities will depend on highly vigilant observation of changing conditions, adaptive corporate strategies, and more agile and resilient operations.”
“Amidst the challenges, the industry has uncovered fresh routes to growth.”
Einstein Says: Embrace Opportunity
But yes, you need to be an Einstein to keep up. Fortunately, everyone’s favorite genius actually offered some sage and optimistic advice: ‘In the middle of difficulty lies opportunity’.
“And as we reach the halfway point of the 2020s, manufacturing firms will no doubt be hoping he was right. From global supply chain disruptions and labor shortages to the explosion of AI and the worst public health crisis in a century, the challenges of the last five years have tested the industry’s resilience and ingenuity like never before,” according to ‘Theory Of Resiliency: How Manufacturers Make 2025 The Year Of Einstein’. “And there is no sign things are slowing down either.”
“Yet even so, there are reasons to be optimistic. Amidst the challenges, the industry has uncovered fresh routes to growth. A new generation of diversified, interconnected supplier ecosystems have emerged to boost agility and resiliency in the face of disruption. Innovative operating models are helping firms meet the shifting expectations of customers and staff. And automation, AI, and data-driven decision-making have become genuine enablers of value.”
In short: “It’s time for the industry to embrace its inner Einstein” – while harnessing the power of people.
“Success requires moving beyond siloed applications to develop a comprehensive strategy that turns data into actionable intelligence at every level from the shop floor to the top floor.”
Industry Pundits Say: Better Together
Whether you want to build a more resilient supply chain, accelerate smart manufacturing, or harness AI, it will take a village—albeit a very large and high-tech one.
“Companies need to differentiate between focus on a project and focus on strategy. When I say smart manufacturing, I’m looking not only at how we connect equipment and deploy solutions, but really looking at connecting that with the people, the processes, and the data,” says one pundit in ‘5 Ways to Future-Proof the Manufacturing Sector: Alexis Asks’. “An overemphasis on the technology section really can miss the mark and help under deliver on some of the promised potential.”
“The true value of AI in manufacturing will not come from point solutions alone, but from creating an integrated ecosystem where data, analytics, and decision-making work together seamlessly across the enterprise,” says another pundit. “Success requires moving beyond siloed applications to develop a comprehensive strategy that turns data into actionable intelligence at every level from the shop floor to the top floor.”
“When you are the world’s biggest toymaker, that reputation relies on keeping your customers—young and old—enchanted.”
Lego Says: Keep It Enchanted – While Doing It With Partners
Lego has always been adept at agility since pivoting from wood to plastic after a devastating fire in 1960. As a family company, they also have the luxury of thinking long-term.
“Lego has continued to thrive, while most rivals have struggled with the toy business’s ever-shifting fads. Over the past 20 years, the company’s revenue has grown ten-fold, reaching DKr66bn ($9.7bn) in 2023, according to ‘Can Lego Remain The World’s Coolest Toymaker?’
“When you are the world’s biggest toymaker, that reputation relies on keeping your customers—young and old—enchanted,” says the current CEO.
Another key to their success has been partnerships. “That is why in 2022 Lego invested in a partnership with Epic Games, maker of “Fortnite”, a popular video game, to build ‘engaging digital experiences for kids of all ages’. Their arrangement has proved lucrative.”
And since Lego serves kids – the inheritors of the planet – the company has also been thinking long-term in terms of reducing their carbon footprint to enable these enchanted kids turning into tomorrow’s enchanted AFOLs (“adult fans of Lego”).
So, what would Lego do? Keep your inner child alive and be willing to extend your sense of family.
“… hopefully find some way to live, which allows them to be faithful to their core beliefs, their core values, even in the face of a world that has changed in a very unexpected way.”
A Science Fiction Writer Says: Keep It Down To Earth
In other family values news…
The rate of AI development continues to resemble a runaway sci-fi plot. To grasp this, many have turned to author Ted Chiang, who has written various philosophical short stories and novellas about dealing with AI and “what it means to be a human living by an ever-evolving set of rules.”
One widely shared idea is how we should deal with – and maintain control over – all these new emerging AIs. Namely, we should raise these foreign intelligences as we do our children.
Meanwhile, In another interview, Chiang says, “I would say that big technological changes, they often will demand that we kind of rethink a lot of things, but they don’t automatically change our fundamental values. If you loved your children before, you should continue to love your children — there’s no technological advance that will make you think, ‘Oh, actually, loving my children, I guess I’m going to discard that idea.’ So, I wouldn’t say that the characters are unaffected or that they just go on being the same. It’s more that they hopefully find some way to live, which allows them to be faithful to their core beliefs, their core values, even in the face of a world that has changed in a very unexpected way.”
Thanks for bringing it back down to earth, Ted!
“The most successful manufacturers will create adaptive systems that maintain efficiency during normal operations while possessing built-in flexibility to rapidly reconfigure when disruptions occur.”
A GenAI Says: Balance Efficiency With Resilience
To help get to the point, we asked the GenAI model Claude what manufacturers should do in times of geopolitical flux. They intoned: “The most successful manufacturers will create adaptive systems that maintain efficiency during normal operations while possessing built-in flexibility to rapidly reconfigure when disruptions occur. This means designing operations that can quickly scale production up or down, shift between different products, and activate alternative supply routes when needed.”
“By taking these steps, manufacturers can create operations that don’t merely survive geopolitical challenges but emerge stronger and more competitive in an increasingly complex global environment.”
That’s not a bad pep talk, Claude. If you had also stressed the importance of people and partnerships, you would have totally nailed it.
Let’s get to work.
Read the previous edition of Manufacturing – The News: ‘The State Of Crystal Balls For 2025’.
