Cyber resilience in manufacturing has become an uptime KPI. When systems fail, the question is not what policy do we have. It is how fast can we recover, and can we restart safely on a live line. Many firms invest heavily in prevention. Yet they still struggle when reality hits. The gap is not technical. …
We’re pressing pause on Beyond the Buzzwords blog for a few weeks. And honestly, we think more leaders should do the same. It’s easy to fill every week with back-to-back calls, endless firefighting, and half-finished strategy decks. But real progress, the kind that drives your manufacturing performance, often needs space to breathe. Time away from the laptop. …
Read more “Manufacturing Trends 2025: What Factory Leaders Really Care About”
If you’ve ever tried scaling industry 4.0 in manufacturing plant, you’ll recognise this story. A new system goes live on one line. It runs well. You get a bump in uptime or energy efficiency. Everyone’s optimistic. The pilot proves that Industry 4.0 works. But then it fizzles. Rollout plans get deprioritised. Budget discussions go quiet. …
Read more “Scaling Industry 4.0 in Manufacturing: From Pilots to ROI at Scale”
A Wake-Up Call, Not a Whitepaper If you’ve been wondering how to start digital transformation in manufacturing, really start, not just talk about it, the latest 2025 SIRI Global Benchmarking Report offers the most useful reality check you’ll read all year. The 2025 Smart Industry Readiness Index (SIRI) report by the International Centre for Industrial Transformation (INCIT) is the most comprehensive …
Read more “How to Start Digital Transformation in Manufacturing: Lessons from the 2025 SIRI Report”
At the Radical Collaboration event in London on the 16th May, it became clear that incremental improvements won’t fix the deep inefficiencies in how we work across the manufacturing ecosystem. What’s needed now is a fundamental reset, one that breaks down silos, rethinks relationships between manufacturers and their partners, and creates the conditions for transformation to …
Read more “Radical Collaboration in Action: The Quorum Principle in Manufacturing”
The author reflects on the disconnect between UK manufacturing discussions at the National Manufacturing Summit and the pressing real-world challenges faced by manufacturers. Despite covering key issues like the skills gap, digitalization, and supply chain resilience, the summit’s focus on abstract ideas and jargon overshadowed practical solutions, highlighting the need for urgent, reality-based conversations to foster meaningful change.
The article discusses the Seven Deadly Sins of Digital Transformation in Manufacturing, emphasizing common mistakes that hinder progress and waste resources. It outlines the importance of engaging frontline workers, aligning technology with business objectives, having a clear strategy, being patient, focusing on actionable data, customizing solutions, and prioritizing change management to ensure successful digital initiatives.
In the “Manufacturing Mouse Trap” blog, the analogy of the classic mousetrap illustrates the importance of simplicity in digital transformation for manufacturing. Companies often overcomplicate solutions, losing sight of operational efficiency. By prioritizing functionality, intuitive design, and scalability, organizations can achieve measurable success and avoid the pitfalls of excess complexity.
Last week, I had the honour of delivering the keynote at the Digital Manufacturing Summit UK 2024 from Transform Industry. I was invited by Ryan —a company dedicated to helping businesses unlock funding for innovation—and it was a whirlwind of insights, debates, and, let’s be honest, more than a few buzzwords. While the summit showcased …
Why are we writing this article about Buzzwords to Benefits? In today’s boardrooms, manufacturing leaders are bombarded with buzzwords like ‘digital twin,’ industry 5.0,’ and ‘generative AI-driven analytics.’ These terms have become the modern-day snake oil—promising revolutionary changes without addressing the fundamental question: What real, measurable value do they bring to our business? How do we …
Read more “From Buzzwords to Benefits: Navigating Digital Transformation in Manufacturing”