Key points
Digital transformation is a leading trend in big business thinking. It’s talked about in world-class business schools, top tier firms, and the technology industry at large, as the panacea for the future of industry. Similar terms like Industry 4.0, Smart Factories, Factory of the Future are all shades of digital transformation. So what does it mean?
Digital transformation is the emergence of new technologies converging with a maturing of existing ones which are fused to our physical world to completely transform traditional industrial and manufacturing processes to highly efficient, automated ways of making things fit for the 21st century. It’s even been likened to other industrial epochs like the invention of the telegraph, the locomotive revolution, and even electricity.
It goes without saying digital transformation plays a huge role in the manufacturing industry. It’s importance has meant most business leaders have begun formulating and implementing digital transformation strategies over the past few years.
Each strategy may be different for every organisation but the general approach will see them taking many years to achieve and requires overhauling every corner of the manufacturing and value chain process, which can be expensive and risky.
However, Covid-19 changed this, as it meant manufacturers had to put their strategic agendas on hold while they battle with unprecedented operational challenges as well as volatile and unpredictable markets.
Digital transformation post Covid
The pandemic played a large role in exposing significant and often widespread operational weaknesses within the manufacturing industry. It brought into sharp relief where infrastructure, legacy systems and incumbent processes exacerbated the problems that manufacturers faced. Manufacturers were faced with an abundance of problems instantly which they did not anticipate, including:
Influx and decrease in product demand
Experiencing a major hit on product demand. This put even more pressure on businesses trying to find ways to cut costs and stay afloat. To combat this, it was important to look at ways to significantly reduce costs, improve efficiencies and reduce the workforce, but still maintain what demand was left.
However, some were on the opposite side of the spectrum and saw an increase in demand for products. For those organisations that saw a high demand, it was imperative to identify ways in which to maximise throughput and productivity.
- Fewer workers
Adapting to a reduced workforce due to illness, self-isolation or restrictions in travel. It was not uncommon for staff to switch to unfamiliar roles to backfill critical shop floor processes. Workers who were inexperienced were still required to maintain operational performance and quality standards.
- Working away from the plant floor
Moving staff away from the plant floor and into more isolated spaces, or working from home, which would help stop the spread of the virus according to government guidelines. As a result, manufacturers were unable to access critical operational data remotely.
- Shortages in the supply chain
Those that found themselves in a position where they saw demand increase for a product also struggled. Manufacturers found themselves in a position whereby their supply chains could be disrupted or cut off. With such short notice it is difficult to switch suppliers to get the raw material needed to manufacture a product.
Addressing these challenges with technology
Thankfully, new technology solutions could be used to help address these challenges. For example, cloud-based Manufacturing Intelligence solutions can help manufacturers tackle the challenge of working away from the plant floor by enabling staff to work efficiently in an isolated space just like normal. This could be quickly achieved through rapid procurement, deployment and training, typical with cloud-based solutions.
Each challenge comes with its own set of difficulties and overcoming them means manufacturers need to pay particular attention to the functions, areas and processes where such technology solutions have the greatest impact.
Deploying technology solutions quickly to the areas with most need, urgency or benefit has led manufacturers to mitigate many of the avoidable impacts the pandemic is having on their businesses.
But this is an iterative process, focusing on a single process, area or plant with the greatest opportunity, before extending out to include other processes, products or work areas.
The outcome is a more gradual, tactical approach to digital transformation. As digital solutions are gradually deployed further across the enterprise, manufacturers are also moving closer towards their digital transformation vision.
This iterative and phased approach to digital transformation has a range of other benefits, including:
- Manageable – it is easier to manage from a resource perspective, with the scope of each tactical implementation being smaller and more manageable.
- Less risky – lessons can be learnt and changes made in areas where any negative impact is smaller before a phased expansion.
- Ease of understanding – the learning curve is less steep for the teams deploying the technology and using it within the production environment.
- Quicker – the time to value can be realised faster than larger more complex digital transformation approaches.
- Less complicated – these tactical deployments are less complex and less prone to unforeseen problems arising.
An unforeseen but encouraging shift to digital transformation
Each industry has encountered problems during the pandemic. Those working in manufacturing, hospitality, leisure, retail, and or travel, have experienced a turbulent year where ambiguity and apprehension remains at the front of everyone’s mind.
But the pandemic has also led to opportunity, accelerated through digital transformation initiatives. What was once a long-term strategy that organisations planned to implement over the course of years, quickly became deployed in months, or even weeks. Although the end goal looks similar, the road to how we got there was not.
