INTELLIGENT MANUFACTURING quintessential for business growth — especially given their digital savviness that can give businesses a big leg up in the new age of Smart Manufacturing . Manufacturers must re-think their relationship with these digitally-literate workers and retool their organisations to leverage technology to motivate and empower this next-generation workforce . Sitting at the intersection of workers and systems to unite information and execution , technology plays a vital role in reducing complexity , improving the quality of work life , and enhancing productivity . Business systems that are intuitive and accessible can assist Millennials wanting to have an immediate impact in the workplace .
Millennials want to invest their time and energy in innovative organisations , and in positions where they can make a difference ; they have little patience for waiting on month-end reporting to see if their contributions have moved the mark . They want real-time feedback which can be delivered via wearables / mobile , cloud , analytics and other enabling technologies .
Stepping up to “ Servitisation ” In the past few years , we ’ ve seen the emergence of new disruptive business models , and this trend will continue in 2017 . For example , the emergence of the “ distribu-facturer ” where distributors — under pressure to provide more customer value — are now adding services such as light manufacturing or kitting , and manufacturers are doing the same to extend their value by offering field service and maintenance options .
As organisations align their offerings to meet a wider array of needs and requirements throughout the customer journey , this creates opportunities to capture greater revenues and competitive differentiation . But as they branch out to serve a broader range of customer needs , and get closer to the end consumer , customer experience becomes more critical .
With globalisation and disintermediation , supply chains have gotten more complex and business
HESHAM EL KOMY Senior Director , International Channels , Epicor Software
more competitive . Supply chain visibility and responsiveness is key to know when there are deviations to plan and move quickly to ensure customer obligations can be met . Over the years manufacturers have leaned out manufacturing processes and cut costs as much as possible ; in 2017 , the supply chain will be “ the new frontier ” for opportunities to lower costs , improve responsiveness and reduce risk .
The customer experience imperative mandates widespread collaboration and visibility across the entire manufacturing value chain ; shop floor operations and top floor operations must be connected . Siloed systems that stand in the way of a clear “ line of sight ” from the manufacturing floor to the finance office will impede organisations .
Manufacturers must be able to make sense of business data quickly to understand the greatest business opportunities and threats that must be addressed to support growth and profitability — and be able to answer key questions about their business such as :
• How are we doing sales-wise , up / down , month-over-month , and by territory ?
• What are the inventory levels , how much is in stock versus demand ?
• What is the status of our outstanding accounts payable ( AP ), accounts receivable ( AR ), and cash flow ?
• How are we tracking regarding on time shipment performance , supplier / procurement scorecard , waste / cost on the manufacturing floor , etc .?
This enables course corrections and fine tuning of go-to-market strategies , customer management , planning and inventory management , and financial health ( better AP / AR management ).
Seizing the day with strategic technology investments This year is shaping up to be the best start for manufacturers in the past decade ; it ’ s time for smart strategic moves to make the most of it . Focused investments in the Cloud , the IoT and analytics will enable manufacturers in the UAE to seize opportunities today , and also be prepared to embrace change and whatever the future brings . www . intelligentcio . com INTELLIGENTCIO
77