20 Business and Manufacturing Trends to Watch for in 2017

Pivot International  |   December 08, 2016

As the year comes to an end, we in the business and manufacturing world are inevitably taking stock of what’s behind us, and looking toward what’s to come.

With a new administration in the White House, not to mention ongoing developments in technology and sustainability, we’re going to see some big changes in 2017. Take a look below for the 20 trends that I’ll be watching for as 2017 begins.

1. More manufacturing will return to the U.S. I believe the Trump presidency and his announced corresponding agenda will represent a net gain on all fronts regardless whether one is functioning in the manufacturing or the services segment, as he plans to implement less regulation and lower tax rates, both corporate and personal, which should create a substantial influx of “juice” to the economy.

   With respect to U.S. manufacturing specifically, with the earlier mentioned actions, economic demand should meaningfully increase resulting in greater demand for goods and services, which will obviously all need to be manufactured.

   This will represent a sizeable gain in demand which will funnel through to the U.S. manufacturing industry.This, along with Trump’s position to incentive “reshoring” through a likely tax preference and other forms of government-based initiatives intended to result in different actions by the private sector, U.S. manufacturing should be the big beneficiary and therefore, create more jobs right here in America. I do not believe these actions will be as much focused on tariffs but rather in a form of tax incentive structures.

2. Growth in green or sustainable manufacturing. Millennials are exerting greater power as a purchasing group, and as a group, they’re very environmentally conscious. This increased demand for sustainable products as well as advances in alternative energy and technology mean that it’s becoming more important – and easier – for facilities to reduce waste and pollution while also reducing manufacturing costs.

3. 3D printing creates increased opportunity, as well as disruption. Manufacturers will see opportunity for faster, less expensive production as 3D printing continues to enter more and more industries. However, as 3D printing becomes more mainstream and accessible to consumers, manufacturers will see greater disruption of their traditional business models.

4. Growth in “cobotics.” Robotics have already had a huge impact on the way manufacturers work, especially in China, where robotics are replacing human-operated machines in many cases. In the U.S., however, industrial robots are being deployed to complement, rather than replace, workers – hence the term “cobotics.” Expect this movement to impact more industries, in addition to the aerospace and automotive industries where it’s already taken hold.

5. Nearshoring gains momentum. Nearshoring involves companies moving production processes back to the U.S., creating new manufacturing jobs close to their distribution markets. This is especially prevalent in prototype and small-batch manufacturing. This shift will continue to gain momentum.

6. E-commerce continues to expand. E-commerce completely revolutionized the retail business, and has allowed producers to reach out directly to consumers. This, in turn, has impacted the manufacturing industry, increasing the need for smaller batches of products and faster turnaround times. E-commerce will continue to shape the manufacturing landscape in 2017.

7. Increased need for tech manufacturing. The Pew Research Center reports that a median 68 percent of adults in advanced economies own a smartphone. In emerging economies, smartphone ownership is rapidly rising, as is internet usage. The demand for these and other technological products is only going to increase, and manufacturers must innovate if they’re going to keep up.

8. The Internet of Things grows. As the Internet of Things takes hold, more items that previously had little or no technological components are needing to be connected to the internet. This is fueling a massive growth in the need for technological manufacturing.

9. More and more companies understand the value of crowdsourcing. Crowdsourcing has changed product development, allowing many more independent inventors to achieve a path to market than ever before. Companies, too, can benefit from crowdsourcing. Soliciting feedback and new product ideas via social media is an effective and increasingly popular tactic.

10. Growth in wearable tech. Wearables that track our sleep, activity, nutrition, and more have become mainstream. As the tech evolves, expect to see ever-more sophisticated wearables on the market.

11. Augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) find their footing in the industrial world. AR and VR are taking hold in factories around the world, where these technologies are used to offer direction and troubleshooting to workers in real time, as they’re working on a task. 2017 will see this trend grow, as people become more comfortable with AR, in particular.

12. Modest growth in the manufacturing sector will continue. While the manufacturing sector hasn’t seen booming growth in some time, it’s expected to continue growing at modest rates throughout 2017.

13. Wider use of rapid prototyping. Rapid prototyping is a highly cost-effective way for product designers to test and troubleshoot their products. As 3D printing availability expands, rapid prototyping will become more the norm.

14. Artificial intelligence decreases production time. Like AR and VR, AI is changing the way factories work. For example, AI robots can now identify defective products in real time, pull them from production, and order a replacement. That prevents production of thousands more defective products, saving a manufacturer millions of dollars and drastically shrinking production time.

15. Increased need to accommodate rapid change. Thanks to the pace of our connected world, demand for products can shift more quickly than ever. Manufacturers need to be agile in order to survive these changes.

16. Faster emergence of consumer demand. New items, concepts, and trends can spread very quickly thanks to social media. Product designers and manufacturers need to be attuned to this chatter in order to avoid falling behind in their industries.

17. Collapsing product lifecycles. Especially in the tech industry, products are relevant for a shorter time period than they used to be. Any given model of smartphone is generally out of date within three years. The challenge for manufacturers will be turning out quality items while still keeping up with the necessary changes to existing products, and the need for new ones.

18. Rapid design. Thanks to advanced software and rapid prototyping, design teams are able to design new products in days – even hours – instead of weeks and months. This will shorten the time to market for thousands of products.

19. Same-day shipping and delivery. The growth in same-day delivery, pioneered by Amazon, is disrupting traditional business models in logistics and inventory. We’ll see more companies trying out same day shipping and delivery as the year goes on.

20. Massive need for work-based training and education. The new business models that technology has enabled, as well as the technology itself, have created a huge need for an educated workforce in manufacturing, product design, logistics, etc. Right now, manufacturing faces a dearth of qualified workers. Companies need to address this head-on, investing in training, education, and recruitment.

2017 will be a year of great opportunity for companies that are ready to embrace these trends. How are you getting ready for these changes?