但是，他们应该如何为期望成为最苛刻的时期之一做准备呢？
Over the next 15 years, companies will face many additional challenges, making their need to sustain cost efficiency and quality a given. Developing manufacturing excellence will be key to competing effectively. Customer segments are proliferating with each segment seeking more tailored products and supporting services to suit their specific needs, while Internet access to product comparison information virtually anytime and anywhere is helping to fuel customer expectations for faster launches and higher quality.
此外，全球供应链的复杂性正在增长，将需要更大的知名度和更健壮的管理以确保有效生产。对工程人才和原材料的需求将继续增长，并且在整个组织中对可持续性水平的审查增加，而不仅其产品将要求组织重新审查采购，生产和分销资源。
更改的属性
埃森哲概述了五个获胜的制造属性公司将需要拥抱在这种不断变化的环境中蓬勃发展。
首先,转向高度定制的产品s will favor manufacturers that can be flexible, mastering a dual focus which includes both traditional and modular manufacturing processes. This strategy will help companies continue to meet traditionally mass-produced product needs, while satisfying specialized demand that requires a modular approach to address the complexity involved in producing such products.
Customization also will impact supply considerations. Manufacturers are already finding that moving supply too far from demand hinders their ability to meet customer expectations for specialized products. To succeed, they will need to adopt a ‘globally local’ mindset that balances supply locations with demand locations. Then too, it will be important to design a network based on total value chain costs and customer service. This is in addition to migrating operation modular components to low-cost opportunities.
在其他地方，制造过程的许多供应商已成为帮助公司实现价值的重要组成部分。为了在未来几年推进这一趋势，公司将需要采用合同制造等新的制造模型，例如，该模型有助于消费电子公司与非常短的产品生命周期抗衡的能力。模型和流程可能会有所不同，以更好地满足各种渠道和客户需求。但是，总体好处将是从固定成本转移到可变成本，这将帮助制造商实现所需的灵活性。
The fourth attribute companies will need to develop is shop floor agility. This will include applying continuous improvement programs to whatever strategic activities and models are adopted; using reliable, efficient equipment that is highly configurable and easily transportable; and placing people with the right skills in regions where operations are expanding or being established. Leveraging predictive analytics will be critical too. Manufacturers that make effective use of analytical data will gain greater insight into customer, supply chain, product development and production needs, as well as be able to better anticipate cost, quality, productivity, or customer service issues.
Finally, increased interest in environmental and social sustainability is placing greater pressure on public companies, in particular, to provide sustainability transparency. Manufacturers will need to find innovative ways to incorporate elements of sustainability into their offerings, and make customers aware of those elements from design to disposal.
Industrial manufacturers that delay addressing the many challenges emerging around them will risk being overtaken by more nimble competitors. Developing these five manufacturing attributes will help set a course toward transforming manufacturing operations into a competitive advantage and achieving high performance.
詹姆斯·罗宾斯，，，，james.a.robbins@accenture.com，是全球管理咨询，技术服务和外包公司Accenture的高级主管。
