According to 'The State of Smart Manufacturing Report' released by Plex Systems, a subsidiary of Rockwell Automation and a provider of cloud-based smart manufacturing solutions, manufacturers in the Asia-Pacific region are adopting and planning smart manufacturing solutions to maintain and develop their competitiveness amidst the pandemic and wartime situations.

Flex System released its 7th annual survey report, 'The State of Smart Manufacturing Report'. This survey was conducted on over 300 manufacturers across various industries, including automobiles, aerospace, food and beverages, electronics, consumer goods, plastics and rubber, and precision metal forming, and covers global manufacturing trends, challenges, and outlooks.

According to the report, the adoption of smart manufacturing technology accelerated even during the pandemic.

The number of companies that have adopted smart manufacturing reached 50% globally in 2021, and it is predicted that this will accelerate to 75% by the end of 2022, with some component of smart manufacturing being adopted.

This can be attributed to the fact that the problems manufacturers already faced were exposed and exacerbated by the pandemic. In particular, manufacturers in the Asia-Pacific region faced a shortage of skilled workers, competition, and supply chain disruptions.

93% of responding companies in the Asia-Pacific region stated that “smart manufacturing is a key factor contributing to the future success of companies,” and the majority of Asia-Pacific companies with a positive perception of smart manufacturing stated that they “will adopt smart manufacturing technologies, such as business process automation, implementation of automated processes, and supply chain planning, within the next 7 to 11 months.” This rate was higher than that of North America (84%), Europe, and the Middle East and Africa (75%).

Jerry Foster, Chief Technology Officer at Flex Systems, explained, “This research report will help manufacturers benchmark their technology strategies and adopt smart manufacturing best practices to maintain and advance their competitiveness,” adding, “The results of the study showed that manufacturers aiming for process streamlining and problem-solving are addressing business issues and improving performance by focusing on the utilization of smart manufacturing technologies.”

Meanwhile, the survey revealed that more than half of the responding companies identified the Manufacturing Execution System (MES) as the most important smart manufacturing initiative, although all parts of the manufacturing process are important. Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Asset Performance Management, Quality Management System (QMS), and Supply Chain Planning (SCP) followed.

In addition, machine learning and AI are technologies that manufacturers will prioritize utilizing within the next five years, and it was found that more than 50% of manufacturers in the Asia-Pacific region are adopting the cloud to reduce risk.

Steven Chiu, Head of Sales for the Asia-Pacific region at Flex Systems, explained, “Manufacturers in Asia have been negatively impacted by global crises such as the pandemic and the war that broke out in Eastern Europe. As a key hub accounting for half of the world’s total manufacturing volume, the Asia-Pacific economic region is driving reconstruction in the post-pandemic era based on manufacturing, and smart manufacturing solutions such as cloud-based technologies have become essential for maintaining and developing the competitiveness of manufacturers in the region and improving business results.”