CI Newsletter | February 15, 2024

Posted By: Harold King CI News,

The Bi-Weekly Newsletter of the Council of Industry

February 15, 2024

Council of Industry Updates
What's Happening in Your Association
Manufacturing Advocacy Day February 28th In Albany – Tax Policy, Workforce, And Energy Among The Legislative Meeting Topics 

The Manufacturers Alliance of New York will host its Advocacy Day February 28th beginning at 7:30 AM in Albany.  Manufacturing Advocacy Day is the day manufacturers from across the state converge on Albany to press for growth friendly policies. Leaders in manufacturing participate in a planning breakfast, meet with State Elected Officials, and learn about the latest policy initiatives and politics over lunch. Breakfast and lunch will be held at The Fort Orange Club. Meetings will take place across the Capital and Legislative Office Buildings just a few blocks away. New York State Senator John Mannion previously confirmed as the breakfast speaker. Public Service Commissioner Diane Burman is confirmed as the lunch speaker.   

Among the issues we will be discussing are the rules being put in place to implement the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, zeroing out the tax on pass through manufacturers to align with those organized as C corporations, supporting apprenticeships in manufacturing as well as other workforce development programs, and letting COVID leave laws sunset. 

All Council of Industry manufacturing members are welcome to participate.  Registration closes February 19th.  

Click Here To Register  

Manufacturing Champion Award Breakfast And Workforce Developers Expo On April 26th In Middletown 

Nominations have closed for the 2024 Council of Industry Manufacturing Champions Awards and the winners will be announced early next month.  The Champions will receive their awards at a Breakfast held at The Villa in Middletown -the same venue that hosted the event last year, on April 26th.  

The Council of Industry's Manufacturing Champions Award is presented annually to individuals and/or organizations that “Through vision, dedication and tireless involvement have worked to overcome some of the many obstacles faced by manufacturers in the Hudson Valley and in so doing they have made it possible for manufacturers and their employees to prosper.”  Past Champions include owners of manufacturing businesses, key employees, teachers and educators, economic development leaders, educational institutions, economic development organizations elected officials and agencies supporting the manufacturing workforce pipeline. Follow the link below for a list of past champions. The event also includes a Workforce Developers Expo. The Expo features BOCES, other High Schools, 2 and 4 year colleges, Workforce Investment Boards, as well as private and government organization the are helping to develop and train the current and future manufacturing workforce in the Hudson Valley. Hudson Vally Focus Live with Tom Sipos (a past Manfuacturing Champion) will broadcast live from the event that morning interviewing the Champions and other guests.

Learn more, sponsor and register here

Reserve Your Ad Space In The Spring 2024 Issue Of HV MFG – The Magazine By, For And About Hudson Valley Manufacturers 

The ad deadline for the Spring edition of HV Mfg is rapidly approaching. This issue includes a company profile of James L. Talyor Manufacturing - a 113-year-old Poughkeepsie based manufacturer of woodworking equipment as well as a Q&A with Lee Galparin, President of Smith & Warren a 99-year-old White Plaines based manufacturer of badges for law enforcement, fire departments the military and others. It will also look at ERP systems, trends in globalization and their impact on Hudson Valley firms, the importance of training your middle managers, and much more. 

The HV MFG Spring 2024 Issue also includes the Council of Industry’s Member and Associate Member Directories, which include company listings and brief descriptions of their products and services. 

Your support of the HV Mfg supports the Council of Industry in its efforts to inform educators, policymakers, and the public in general about the vital role manufacturing plays in our regional economy as well as the challenges the sector faces. 

Learn more about advertising here 

For information on advertising in this and other CI publications
contact Harold King (hking@councilofindustry.org) for more information

Manufacturing Industry News

The Most Impactful Automation Technologies Of 2024 

IEEE, a technical professional organization, recently conducted a survey of 350 technology leaders from the U.S., U.K., China, India, and Brazil for its report: "The Impact of Technology in 2024 and Beyond: an IEEE Global Study.” The report indicates that the general manufacturing industries, especially automotive and energy, will be among the business sectors most impacted by technology in 2024. 

As no surprise, artificial intelligence (AI) is expected to be the technology having the most impact across the industry this year. Sixty-five percent of respondents to the IEEE study expect AI—including predictive and generative AI, machine learning, and natural language processing—to be the leading technology change factor. The next two most impactful technologies are expected to be: Extended reality, including metaverse, augmented reality, virtual reality, and mixed reality, according to 28% of respondents, and cloud computing, noted by 24% of respondents. 

Read more at Automation World

Understanding The Risks Of ‘Jumping The Shark’ In Leadership 

In the realm of leadership, the phrase “jumping the shark” has transcended its television roots to denote a critical, often detrimental, phase in a leader’s trajectory. It characterizes the point at which a leader, in a bid to retain or recapture dwindling popularity, relevance, or influence, resorts to actions or decisions that are perceived as desperate, outlandish, or detached from reality. Rather than bolstering the leader’s position, these actions often precipitate a decline in their credibility and effectiveness. 

Foremost among these is the erosion of credibility. Leadership, at its core, is predicated on trust and confidence, and when a leader opts for dramatic, uncharacteristic, or controversial maneuvers, it can severely undermine the faith that stakeholders, including employees, customers, and partners, have placed in them. This loss of trust is not just damaging; it can be irrevocable, striking at the heart of a leader’s ability to guide and inspire. 

Read more at Forbes 

What We Can Learn From AI Use Cases In Manufacturing  

Although AI has raised as many questions as it has answered, manufacturers are well-positioned to use AI throughout the value chain due to the vast amount of operation data available. Manufacturers are increasingly evaluating and adopting AI solutions to leverage their data, a trend publicly traded companies have been highlighting to investors in company presentations and earnings calls. 

A 2023 report from Capgemini found that 55% of a survey group of industrial manufacturing companies “have started exploring the potential of generative AI” and 45% “have begun working on some pilots of generative AI initiatives.” To identify trends in how manufacturing organizations are adopting AI, RSM reviewed earnings and investor presentations for publicly traded companies. While specific use cases vary widely by industry and sector, this article presents key areas that stand out in how manufacturers are adopting the technology. 

Read more at IndustryWeek 

Mexico Passes China As No. 1 Source Of US Imports 

Continuing global tensions and tariffs on goods imported from China have upended trade standings, pushing Mexico to a dominant No. 1 position as the biggest supplier of imports to the United States. Data released by the U.S. Department of Commerce show a dynamic upset of global trade, highlighted by a $130 billion flip between China and Mexico. Trade with Mexican goods grew by nearly $21 billion and Chinese merchandise fell by $119 billion. Put another way, China’s exports decline last year was roughly the total amount of U.S. imports from India and Brazil combined. 

While near-shoring, the practice of moving manufacturing from Asia closer to the United States to shorten supply lies, may have played a factor, it doesn’t look like it played much of a role outside of Mexico. 

Read more at Industry Week 

Seeing Deeper Into Supply Chain Data 

Supply chain challenges are expected to continue through this year, and businesses must continue to adapt. However, gaining end-to-end visibility continues to be a challenge with suppliers dispersed geographically and operating on systems that may not be digitally compatible—or digital at all. This article discusses the visibility hurdles in the current landscape as well as short-term and organizational solutions to help improve supply-chain visibility.   

Multiple ERP and planning systems in use by different supplies can complicate the task of understanding where everything is at any time. Add to that the geometrically expanding web of primary, secondary, and tertiary suppliers, each with their own systems, and the ideal state of end-to-end visibility seems very hard to reach. For example, the global semiconductor chip shortage that began in 2020 persists today, in part because of the supply chain complexity involved: from raw material to end customer, chip components could “travel well over 50,000 kilometers and cross more than 70 international borders,” according to the Global Semiconductor Alliance. Shortages, slowdowns, and transportation issues upstream affected 169 different industries, from electronics and auto manufacturing to soapmaking and industrial furnishings.

Read more at Industry Week  

Supply Chain Disruptions Keep Manufacturers On Edge 

As freight rates and delays rise due to the conflict in the Red Sea and a drought in the Panama Canal, many industries continue to shift their supply chain strategy in response to evolving risks. This is not new to manufacturing, however, as the sector has long faced challenges such as an ongoing labor shortage and disruptive material shortages brought on by the pandemic.  

Overcoming these ongoing disruptions will require investments in technology and new strategies, including a growing initiative to increase nearshoring or onshoring efforts. Data from BDO’s 2024 Manufacturing CFO Outlook Survey shows that 27% of manufacturers plan to shift countries in 2024 due to rising transportation costs. Another 44% plan to shift sourcing to new countries this year due to the increasing frequency and severity of natural disasters, along with rising total tax liability (38%), and rising prices for raw materials and commodities (35%). 

Read more at Supply Chain Management 

Auto Suppliers Need To Shift Focus To Survive The Next Decade 

Automotive suppliers are facing substantial shifts in regional positioning, component growth and OEM customer structure. To survive and thrive during the rest of this turbulent decade, manufacturers need to focus heavily on electric vehicle components. Traditional suppliers in Europe and North America are currently not investing enough to foster necessary innovations, claims a recent study conducted by Roland Berger, a consulting firm that specializes in manufacturing and operations management.  

According to Felix Mogge, a partner at Roland Berger, automotive suppliers can be divided into two categories. On one hand, there are new, highly profitable companies focused primarily on batteries, semiconductors and software. These companies compete with incumbent suppliers while expanding their traditional portfolios beyond industry and consumer goods. The new suppliers are experiencing strong growth in the automotive sector and are achieving very high margins across all business areas. These suppliers attained an earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) margin of around 30 percent, reaching as much as 35 percent for software providers. On the other side of the equation are traditional automotive suppliers. Their record profits of the last decade are long gone. Mogge claims that the “new normal” for legacy suppliers is EBIT margins of 5 percent or less. 

Read more at Assembly Magazine 

Boeing Is Haunted By Two Decades Of Outsourcing 

For 20 years, Boeing has engaged in collaborative product development with a number of suppliers. The outsourced R&D, in turn, supported outsourced manufacturing with over 50 key suppliers. These suppliers, in turn, outsourced various parts of the modules they produced to their suppliers. Historically, Boeing was vertically integrated - the great majority of product development and manufacturing was done in-house. Boeing is now a case study on how not to outsource a supply chain. 

“Unless significant sanctions are imposed due to Boeing’s design and production-quality issues, it is likely that business will continue as usual,” according to Christopher Tang. Dr. Tang is a distinguished professor at the UCLA Anderson School of Management. Problems are likely to continue, Dr. Tang argues, because the current crisis is hardly unprecedented; it is based on the changes that Boeing made to its R&D and manufacturing processes during the development of the 787 Dreamliner. The Dreamliner program was launched in April of 2004. “The company aimed to develop the aircraft quickly and inexpensively to compete with the Airbus A380. Instead of developing the aircraft in-house and sourcing parts from suppliers,” Dr. Tang explained, “Boeing decided to outsource 70% of the design, engineering, and manufacturing of entire modules to over 50 strategic partners.” 

Read more at Forbes

Bridging The Gender Gap In Manufacturing 

Workforce shortages continue to grow in nearly every industry, impacting the U.S. economy and gross domestic product. Current estimates are that the manufacturing industry will reach a critical shortage of 2.4 million workers by the year 2028. The numbers point to a clear need for more personnel in the manufacturing industry. The U.S. Census Bureau shows that although women make up 47% of the total workforce, they only make up 30% of the manufacturing workforce. Only one in four manufacturing leaders is a woman. The question is – how do we get more women interested in the field? 

Engaging younger women early in their education to explore the potential in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) careers is one of the ways to close the workforce gender gap. Providing role models for young women is also important. Showcasing successful women in manufacturing while having them share their experiences and achievements can inspire other women to pursue similar careers. 

Read more at Inventory Management 

Briefs

Three Manufacturing Trends to Watch in 2024 – Assembly Magazine 

Slideshow: Getting Better at Producing Parts Faster– Foundry Magazine 

5 Ways to Protect Employees from Workplace Violence – EHS Today 

Metal Additive Manufacturing in Space With a New 3D Printer

Developed By AddUp and Airbus – 3D Printing Industry 

The Future of Maintenance and Reliability is a Combination of Hard and Soft Skills – Plant Services 

Boeing's Organizational Problems Date Back Two Decades – IndustryWeek 

Why Introverted Personalities Make Great Project Managers – Psychology Today 

Lessons for All Leaders from The Super Bowl Coaches– Kevin Eikenberry Group 

Toyota Collaborates with Ready Robotics on Robot Programming – Automation World 

Upcoming Programs

Global Trade Discussion Session - March 22nd

Join us for an engaging webinar featuring Michael Grossman, Senior International Trade Specialist at the U.S. Department of Commerce. This session is designed to provide a comprehensive overview of how the U.S. Commercial Service can be a valuable asset in assisting companies in targeting, entering, and succeeding in international markets.

We will also delve into discussions about U.S. government export financing assistance programs with Rich Foy, Regional Director at the Export-Import Bank of the United States and a representative from the SBA. This is ideal for manufacturers looking to gain valuable knowledge and guidance in navigating international trade opportunities.

Don't miss out on this opportunity to enhance your understanding of global trade dynamics and strategies.

Register Here

NEW PODCAST EPISODE OUT NOW!

Season 3, Episode 12: Stephen Pomeroy, President of Schatz Bearing Corporation

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