Manufacturing
Manufacturers are looking to smart factory technologies, combining data analytics and industrial IoT to optimise their processes and reduce operating costs, while minimising water and energy consumption and waste. They’re using AI and ML in demand forecasting and to work around supply chain issues, while focusing on data, IoT and analytics to improve reliability and safety.
Recent survey figures from Deloitte1 show robots and automation, data analytics and IOT as key investments for 2023 and beyond. Gartner’s 2023 CIO Insights research for manufacturing shows that 80% of CEOs in the sector are increasing their technology investments as a means to counter economic pressures. Of those, 43% are increasing their spend on enterprise resource planning (ERP) in 2023, 37% are increasing investments in application modernisation, and 28% in IoT.2
The recruitment and retention of skilled workers is a challenge across the manufacturing sector, affecting IT teams as much as line of business. And while ongoing technological investments are a necessity, they also require manufacturers to fill new roles in data science, software engineering and AI.
Manufacturing organisations must maintain productivity during periods of significant disruption. Many are putting modern ERP solutions at the heart of their processes and workflows. Technology has become a force for resilience, but reliance on these tools makes their reliability crucial – not to mention their security.
Firms in the sector also face specific cybersecurity challenges, with attackers focused on stealing valuable IP or simply disrupting operations. Plus, while IoT devices have a crucial role to play in automation and optimising processes, they also give IT and security teams a larger attack surface to protect. And where manufacturers operate across different regions or are embracing hybrid working, they need to be able to secure and update devices at a distance, with minimal intervention.
Manufacturers are also under pressure to improve their sustainability – and many see this as an imperative. Sustainability initiatives are increasingly affecting every aspect of the business, IT included.
Modernise operationsManufacturers need to optimise their IT operations and improve their offering to employees. Moving to a Device as a Service model for endpoints can help, improving reliability while reducing IT workloads. Firms can deploy devices rapidly and scale their provision up or down, while partners like HP take over the burden of managing and updating the fleet.
Seamless supportDevice as a Service also makes it easier for a team in one location to support devices across a global business – particularly with a partner that has the same global reach – while proactive endpoint management solutions maximise uptime and keep downtime close to zero. HP Proactive Insights, using the TechPulse analytics platform, uses real-time device telemetry to predict and fix potential issues before a user is even aware of them.
Manage the lifecycleDevice as a Service can also help make IT more sustainable. Full device lifecycle management comes built-in, ensuring that devices are deployed to those who need them, where and when they need them, and that they support productivity throughout their working life. Then, when the time comes for retirement, devices can be data-wiped securely, refurbished and reused within the business or elsewhere.
Protect your IPWhile HP Wolf Security can help firms protect their systems and IP, remote work digital workspace tools can give key workers the ability to work from anywhere. HP Anyware enables teams to access files and data in factory conditions where a conventional workstation wouldn’t survive. There’s support for the most demanding CAD, solid modelling, simulation and visualisation applications, and any IP being worked
on remains safe and secure on premise or in the cloud.
The German pneumatics and electric drive solutions manufacturer came to HP to outsource its day-to-day IT operations across 250 locations and 21,000 employees. HP delivers service desk functions and a wide range of devices through Device as a Service, bringing consistency and standardisation across the global business, with rapid hardware deployment and round-the-clock service and support.
1 Deloitte, ‘2023 manufacturing industry outlook’, https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/pages/energy-and-resources/articles/manufacturing-industry-outlook.html2 Gartner, ‘2023 CIO Agenda Insights for the Manufacturing Industry’ https://emtemp.gcom.cloud/ngw/globalassets/en/information-technology/images/infographics/2023-cio-agenda/2023-cio-agenda-infographics/2023-cio-agenda-manufacturing-infographic.pdf
