Emerging Manufacturing Industry Trends and Challenges

Manufacturing industry trends are shaping the global economy more than ever as employee safety becomes a top priority and manufacturers plan their COVID-19 exit strategy. The global manufacturing industry is currently estimated at US$649.8 billion in value and is projected to reach US$732.2 billion by 2027, growing at a CAGR of 1.7% by 2027.

Emerging trends in the manufacturing sector are expected to lead to rapid growth over the next 5 years. For example, manufacturers are increasingly adopting newer technologies, leading to massive growth potential. Miniaturization of devices, laser-based medical equipment, and robotic equipment are gaining widespread acceptance due to their value propositions around improved doctor-patient experience, minimization of procedural risks, and better procedural accuracy. The proliferation of AI (artificial intelligence), machine learning, and the blockchain in the healthcare sector are also changing the way medical equipment is designed, developed, and distributed.

Despite the massive potential for the future growth of numerous sectors, there are plenty of challenges ahead for the manufacturing industry. One of the biggest challenges currently is the frequently changing and stringent regulations. Medical device manufacturers are constantly faced with new regulatory hurdles. Ever-increasing and changing regulations such as the EU’s MDR are a major challenge for suppliers as they incur additional compliance and change management costs across different regions. This also leads to delays in the time-to-market of the new product.

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In this article, we will elaborate on some of the major trends and challenges expected to impact various sectors of the manufacturing industry.

What is the Manufacturing Industry?

Before we dive into the future trends and challenges of the manufacturing sector, it is important to define the industry. BizVibe’s platform contains more than 450,000 manufacturing companies which are segmented into 86 categories. Each category is being transformed by its own set of trends and challenges that will greatly influence the direction of the manufacturing industry in the coming years. Below we will discuss the trends and challenges influencing some of the major categories of the manufacturing sector.

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Beverage Manufacturing

Emerging Trend – Digitization of Processes

Beverage manufacturers are increasingly adopting digitization in supply chains and manufacturing processes for reaching out to consumers. Both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverage manufacturers are moving toward digitization.

Major Challenge – Rise in Production Costs

The shortage of raw materials such as hops due to global climate change, along with taxes such as sugar taxes, are expected to contribute to a rise in costs for beverage manufacturers. A switch in consumption patterns due to the resultant rise in the prices of beverages could impact the profitability of these manufacturers.

Plastics Product Manufacturing

Emerging Trend – Investments and Capacity Expansion in Plastic Recycling

As the environmental scrutiny on plastics continues to intensify, plastic recycling has emerged as a more sustainable and cost-effective source of plastics. As a result, the plastic recycling sector is experiencing a growing interest from manufacturers who are looking to expand or establish a long-term presence in the recycling business. Companies are constantly partnering with other companies, indulging in M&A activities, or investing in existing recycling capacities to prepare themselves for the growing importance of recycled plastics in their value chain

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Major Challenge – Impact of COVID-19

The outbreak of COVID-19 has significantly impacted the demand and supply levels in the industry. Lockdowns negatively affected the production and supply chain, leading to supply chain bottlenecks that created shortages in several markets. Demand in many end-user industries (e.g. automotive and construction) has suffered considerably and will remain subdued for a prolonged period. Although the packaging and medical industries continue to see high demand and a post-pandemic recovery has started, the overall production and consumption of plastics is expected to be negative in most regions.

Machine Shops; Turned Product; and Screw, Nut, and Bolt Manufacturing

Emerging Trend – Adoption of Automation

Machine shops are intensifying their investments in process automation to add capacity through the utilization of unused time (e.g. nights and weekends), address the shortage of skilled employees, and maintain steady production irrespective of bottlenecks. Even smaller machine shops are now beginning to explore the potential of automation and robotics. Solution providers are moving fast to address the increasing demand for automation in machine shops and are continuously launching new products that create competitive advantages for them.

Major Challenge – Shortage of Skilled Labor

The shortage of skilled workers is increasing complexities across industries, creating problems with quality and efficiency. The shortage will become more prominent in the longer term with an aging population, forcing operators to invest in a high-cost workforce that is appropriately skilled or high-cost technologies and automation to reduce dependence on human skills.

Manufacturing Industry Companies on BizVibe

BizVibe’s platform contains more than 450,000 manufacturing company profiles which are free to view. Each profile consists of in-depth company insights, comprising 50+ data points, including full industry trend and challenge analysis for 86 manufacturing categories.

BizVibe company insights help provide answers to questions such as:

✓ How will industry challenges impact specific geographic regions?

✓ In which regions will emerging trends be the most prominent?

✓ What are a company’s major product and service offerings?

✓ Who are a company’s key executives and what are their roles?

✓ How is a company positioned financially?

✓ Who are a company’s major competitors?

✓ What is the risk level of doing business with a given company?

✓ What is the latest company news?

Additionally, BizVibe enables users to connect with manufacturing companies and includes a feature that allows companies to send and respond to RFI/RFPs directly on the platform. There are manufacturing profiles of companies from over 200 countries on BizVibe, with free access for users to discover, analyze, and connect with these manufacturing industry companies.

View Manufacturing Companies in 200+ Countries