Business Wire

WI-ROCKWELL-AUTOMATION

Share
New State of Smart Manufacturing Study Finds Over 40% of Manufacturers Struggle to Outpace Competitors Due to Lack of Technology and Skilled Workforce

Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE: ROK), the world’s largest company dedicated to industrial automation and digital transformation, today announced the results of the 8th annual “State of Smart Manufacturing Report.” The global study surveyed more than 1,350 manufacturers across 13 of the leading manufacturing countries.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230314005374/en/

To view this piece of content from mms.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.

Rockwell Automation announced the results of the 8th annual “State of Smart Manufacturing Report” (Photo: Business Wire)

This year’s report reveals a focus on delivering profitable growth without sacrificing quality, an emphasis on accessing data’s true potential, and increasing adoption of technology to build resilience, enable agility, increase sustainability, and address workforce challenges.

Key global findings include:

  • Twice as many manufacturers believe their organization lacks the technology needed to outpace the competition, as compared to 2022.
  • 4 out of 5 manufacturers still lack an end-to-end supply chain planning solution.
  • Cybersecurity risks rank highest as the obstacle respondents are looking to mitigate with smart manufacturing initiatives.
  • 45% of manufacturers cite “improving quality” as the main positive outcome they want to achieve with smart manufacturing initiatives.
  • 89% of manufacturers plan to maintain or grow employment due to technology adoption. Additionally, 36% of respondents believe they will be able to repurpose existing workers due to their increasing use of technology.
  • Of the 95% of manufacturers who have formal or informal ESG policies in place, 42% cite “improving efficiencies” as the top driving factor for pursuing ESG initiatives.

“Manufacturers are continuing to seek opportunities for profitable growth but are realizing that uncertainty in workforce availability is impacting quality, along with their ability to meet evolving customer needs,” said Veena Lakkundi, senior vice president, Corporate Strategy and Development, Rockwell Automation. “The survey found that smart manufacturing technology is enabling manufacturers of all sizes to optimize more resilient, agile, and sustainable solutions that accelerate transformation. If we’ve learned anything from history, it’s that organizations that invest in innovation, with a bias for action, during times of uncertainty can outpace competitors.”

Based on the survey findings, technology is crucial to mitigating risk and delivering growth. However, for one-third of manufacturers, the range of available systems and platforms is leading to “technology paralysis” – an inability to decide between solutions. Manufacturers can overcome this indecision by choosing a partner with relevant industry expertise and experience who can advise and guide them in implementing a fit-for-purpose solution to achieve desired outcomes.

“At Rockwell, we combine the power of our portfolio of industry solutions with our second-to-none partner ecosystem to serve as a trusted advisor to leading companies around the world,” said Lakkundi. “As the biggest company focused solely on industrial automation and digital transformation, we work to make the complex simple and meet companies where they are in their journeys.”

The full findings of the report can be found here.

Methodology

This report analyzed feedback from 1,353 respondents from 13 of the top manufacturing countries with roles from management up to the C-suite and was conducted in association with Sapio Research and Plex Systems. The survey covered discrete, process, and hybrid industries across a balanced distribution of company sizes with revenues spanning $10 million to over $10 billion, providing a wide breadth of manufacturing business perspectives.

About Rockwell Automation

Rockwell Automation, Inc. (NYSE: ROK) is a global leader in industrial automation and digital transformation. We connect the imaginations of people with the potential of technology to expand what is humanly possible, making the world more productive and more sustainable. Headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Rockwell Automation employs approximately 26,000 problem solvers dedicated to our customers in more than 100 countries. To learn more about how we are bringing the Connected Enterprise to life across industrial enterprises, visit www.rockwellautomation.com.

To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230314005374/en/

About Business Wire

Business Wire
Business Wire
101 California Street, 20th Floor
CA 94111 San Francisco

http://businesswire.com
DK

Subscribe to releases from Business Wire

Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Latest releases from Business Wire

Social Development Bank Highlights Strategic Partnerships and Global Initiatives at DeveGo 202524.12.2025 17:27:00 CET | Press release

The forum held in Riyadh witnessed the signing of 51 agreements aimed at strengthening the entrepreneurial ecosystem The Social Development Bank (SDB) hosted the second edition of the Entrepreneurship and Modern Business Practices Forum, “DeveGo 2025”, from 21 to 23 December in Riyadh. Held under the patronage of His Excellency Eng. Ahmed bin Sulaiman Al Rajhi, Minister of Human Resources and Social Development and Chairman of SDB’s Board of Directors, the forum brings together government leaders, global experts, investors, and entrepreneurs to shape the future of entrepreneurship and modern business practices in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20251224036724/en/ From right to left: Ahmed Al Rajhi, Saudi's Minister of Human Resources and Social Development, H.E. Rebeca Grynspan, Secretary-General of UNCTAD, and Sultan Al Hamidi, CEO of Social Development (Photo: AETOSWire) Opening th

Making Science Unveils ‘AWAKE’: The AI Venture Studio Industrialising Startup Creation and AI-First Innovative Solutions23.12.2025 20:51:00 CET | Press release

The disruption generated by AI enables the acceleration and industrialisation of the creation of internal solutions and start-ups through centres of excellence in Chicago, Madrid and Tbilisi.This model has already proven its commercial and innovative power through the acceleration of startups like ad-machina, which has multiplied its value by 10 since joining the Making Science ecosystem. Making Science, the global digital acceleration consultancy, today announced the launch of AWAKE Venture Studio. This "AI-first" model represents a new era in systematic innovation, designed to identify, prototype, and scale both internal proprietary solutions and independent AI-native startups with global reach. The launch of AWAKE is motivated by the significant efficiency gains of orders of magnitude that Making Science has already achieved through the internal integration of AI. By applying these methods, the firm has achieved a 2x acceleration in tech feature development reducing time in the depl

FDA Clears First Extended Depth of Focus Contact Lens for Presbyopia23.12.2025 18:07:00 CET | Press release

Deseyne® (vifilcon C) Daily Disposable Soft (Hydrophilic) Contact Lens for Presbyopia with Extended Depth of Focus (EDOF) Delivers Continuous Vision at All Distances—Redefining Presbyopia Correction The Cataltheia Group and its U.S. subsidiary, Bruno Vision Care LLC, a leader in eye health innovation, today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has cleared the first and only Daily Disposable Soft (Hydrophilic) Contact Lens for Presbyopia utilizing patented Extended Depth of Focus (EDOF) optical design technology, enabling commercial distribution in the United States. Deseyne® delivers smooth, continuous focus across near, intermediate, and distance vision, providing clear, natural vision without compromise. This performance is enabled by Cataltheia’s patented hyper-refractive central zone, engineered to precisely redirect light in a controlled manner. The result is a clear clinical advantage over the only other available contact lens option for presbyopia, multifoc

Aramco Awards SLB Long-Term Contract to Support Kingdom’s Unconventional Gas Production Growth23.12.2025 14:58:00 CET | Press release

Five-year contract to drive innovation in stimulation, intervention, digital and frac automationAgreement underscores gas as a pivotal fuel for global energy demand and a bridge to lower-carbon systems Global technology company SLB (NYSE: SLB) has been awarded a five-year contract by Aramco to provide stimulation services for its unconventional gas fields. This award is part of a broader multi-billion contract, supporting one of the largest unconventional gas development programs globally. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20251223074948/en/ The contract encompasses advanced stimulation, well intervention, frac automation, and digital solutions, which are important to unlocking the potential of Saudi Arabia’s unconventional gas resources. The contract encompasses advanced stimulation, well intervention, frac automation, and digital solutions, which are important to unlocking the potential of Saudi Arabia’s unconve

Tabelog, Japan's Largest (*1)Restaurant Search and Reservation Service,Launches Multilingual App for International Visitors23.12.2025 14:00:00 CET | Press release

Experience Japan's Authentic Culinary Scene in Your Language — From Search to Reservation, All on Your SmartphoneRanked No. 1 in Downloads Among "Japanese Gourmet Search Apps" Chosen by International Travelers (*2) Tabelog (https://tabelog.com/en/), Japan's largest restaurant search and reservation service operated by Kakaku.com, Inc., launched its multilingual smartphone application (iOS/Android) for international travelers on Monday, November 17, 2025. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20251221963753/en/ The Tabelog Multilingual App for International Travelers — Japan's Largest Restaurant Search and Reservation Service With approximately 100 million monthly users(*3), Tabelog is Japan's premier service widely used by Japanese locals for daily restaurant discovery. Its database is unrivaled domestically, featuring information on approximately 890,000 establishments nationwide and over 85 million reviews and photo

In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.

Visit our pressroom
World GlobeA line styled icon from Orion Icon Library.HiddenA line styled icon from Orion Icon Library.Eye