Key Trends in Sheet Metal Manufacturing for 2019 and Beyond
Over the years, there has been significant growth in metal manufacturing techniques and applications. Sheet metal companies now provide customised raw materials, final products and components that many different businesses use. By outsourcing welding and design functions, these businesses are able to save on costs, keep up with customer preferences and produce a wider range of products.
The industry 4.0 revolution is transforming how metal fabrication companies operate. Smart technologies, big data and automation have opened up new possibilities within the manufacturing space. This is why you should be aware of emergent trends that will revolutionise the products and services you'll be receiving from your fabrication partner.
Trend #1: Keeping up with customer demands
Customers have more control than ever over the manufacturing process. Whether you produce cars, aeroplane parts, mobile phones or drainage pipes, you'll need to incorporate customer preferences very early in the production process. In the past, sheet metal fabricators (and other manufacturing companies) would simply react when addressing customer concerns. Dysfunctional products and safety issues were the only motivating factors for listening to customers.
Trend #2: Digital supply chains
In the past, supply chains were rigid linear platforms where data movement was restricted. Take the example of sheet metal fabrication. As a customer, you would have limited visibility over where your fabricating partner receives their raw materials. Some customers also don't fully understand how fabricators implement critical workflows such as welding, quality control and project timelines.
The good news is that modern supply chains are responsive, data-driven and increasingly transparent. This means that you can access all the data you need from both upstream and downstream sources as necessary. If you would wish to know where your raw materials are being sourced from or where bottlenecks in the chain are being experienced, you have access to this data in real-time, and the result is smarter workflows and better end products.
Trend #3: Using big data to improve metal manufacturing processes
Speaking of digital supply chains, big data is playing a bigger role in metal fabrication techniques. You can now use such data to predict customer preferences, quality issues and workflow costs—even before a single component is welded. In this way, you can maintain more productive relationships with your fabricating partners while delivering quality products to the end consumer.
Trend #4: Mobile manufacturing
Real-time access to critical manufacturing workflows is the future of the metal fabrication industry. You can expect companies within this field to increasingly use mobile-accessible tools that monitor performance, progress and compliance in real-time.
For more information, contact sheet metal manufacturing companies.
