How We Expect the Manufacturing Industry to Look Moving Forwards


How We Expect the Manufacturing Industry to Look Moving Forwards

The manufacturing industry plays a huge role in keeping the economy ticking over by contributing £139bn a year to UK GDP, stated by ‘Make it British’. However, compared to the industrial revolution era where there would be hundreds of workers in one factory at a time, today only 87% of manufactures employ less than 20 people. Not only this, whereas 9 million people worked in manufacturing in Britain in 1966, there are now less than 3 million today – another quote from ‘Make it British’. This is largely because manufacturing was recognised as cheaper in countries which had lower labouring costs. The manufacturing industry has transitioned heaps and bounds from when it was first globally recognised in the 18th century. Today, the manufacturing sector is a much more ethically recognised industry due to imposed safety regulations which were not necessarily around in the early days. Moving forward, the manufacturing industry is looking to be a lot more precautionary when it comes to workers safety. Within this article I am going to explain how we can expect the manufacturing industry to be moving forwards and how we can adapt to it.

Home Soil Manufacturing

Due to the COVID19 outbreak occurring in mainland China, Wuhan, many factories were forced to shut down to prevent further spread of the virus. This caused detrimental delays for many suppliers. Stated in an article from IPC, electronics manufacturers anticipate at least a five-week product shipment delay from suppliers due to the coronavirus epidemic, according to a survey conducted by IPC, a global electronics manufacturing association. The group says shipping delays from China and other countries where the virus has spread are already having negative impacts on manufacturers. Roughly 65 percent of manufacturers report their suppliers expect, on average, a three-week delay. However, electronics manufacturers expect delays to be longer than what their suppliers are currently quoting. On average, executives expect shipment delays to be at least five weeks. Moving forwards, I believe many companies will be reluctant to solely have their products manufactured in China due to the possibility of another outbreak or second peak. UK based companies may be more favourable to have their products manufactured on home soil to lower the chance of delivery delays if second peak were to occur. However, stated by recent articles, this may not be the case. According to The Guardian, manufacturing industry leaders have called on the government for an emergency bailout as the coronavirus outbreak forces factories across Britain to an effective standstill.

Stricter Health and Safety Guidelines within the Workplace

Currently in the UK there is a two-meter distance guideline for anyone who is not within your household. With no current cure or vaccination for COVID19, we can expect this guideline to be pursued for the foreseeable future, including in workplaces. Many manufacturing firms involve employees working within proximity to each other as passing products to and from one another. Moving forward I expect there will be only a certain number of workers allowed within manufacturing facilities at a given time. This would ensure there is plenty of guided space for employees to work in a safe environment.

Not only this, we can expect stronger quality controls of the final manufactured product to ensure they are medically safe to be handled. For example, if one of the manufactures was to be infected with a virus and handled a product which is being shipped to customers, this virus may stay on the product and contaminate the customers. Therefore, stronger quality controls will likely be put in place to avoid situations like these from occurring.

Lower Demand for Human Employment

Up to 20 million manufacturing jobs around the world could be replaced by robots by 2030, according to analysis firm Oxford Economics. In the grand scheme of things, robotics that are coded to manufacturer products are likely to be more efficient at carrying out heavy continuous labour, rather than humans. Artificial intelligence is encrypted / installed within the robot which is how the devices perform efficiently. Stated by academy archistar, several studies have suggested that artificial intelligence may cause job losses, including within the manufacturing sector. One recent example comes from the University of Oxford as the study found that over 700 types of jobs are at risk of technological disruption. Not only this, up to 20 million manufacturing jobs around the world could be replaced by robots by 2030, according to analysis firm Oxford Economics. However, many jobs have already been taken over by robotic machines such as switchboard operators, lift operators, bridge toll collectors, factory workers and check-out cashiers.

The number of factory workers in manufacturing has fallen sharply because of technological intervention, enabling machines to take on the repetitive heavy labour. One factory in China has replaced 90% of its human workers with robots already, a move which it says has resulted in fewer defects and an increase in production – according to BT.

Green Manufacturing

Aside from COVID19, the environment has been a huge topic recently. With the planets average surface temperate increased by 2 degrees Fahrenheit, there is global concern about the fate of the planet. So far, large companies within the electronics industry such as Mouser Electronics are already doing their bit for the environment. Mouser’s new, smaller, lighter packaging has a significant environmental impact by reducing fuel consumption and emissions during transport. Also, by utilizing a material that is both biodegradable and recyclable, we are lowering the amount of waste. Another company within the electronics industry who have already started with the environmental trend would be Dell. With an aim of limiting environmental impacts, Dell has promoted the safe disposal of their products by coming up with an effective and efficient recycling program. Dell allows customers to give back any Dell-branded equipment to the company for free which encourages safe disposal and reduces the overall e-waste count. I believe that customers will prioritise organisations who are manufacturing their products with a green vision.

By Amy Leary, Marketing Manager at eBOM.com


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