robotics technolgy

Technology is a manufacturer’s best friend. Whether we are talking about new CNC machines, ERP and engineering software, mobile devices and even 3D printers, the manufacturing industry is constantly looking for new technology that help them bring down costs, decrease production times and increase efficiency.

As spring and wire form manufacturers, we are just as concerned with new industry technology as all of our OEM customers, which is why we were particularly interested in this survey conducted by Exact, a company who sells automation software to manufacturers. In the study, which is laid out on this infographic here, you can see a lot of interesting findings about how manufacturers work with and leverage different technologies.

Here are a few of the highlights:

ERP Software

In total, 91% of manufacturers are currently using and ERP system and consider it to be valuable to their organization.

3D Printing

Manufacturers are still split when it comes to 3D printing, with only 59% currently using it. The technology does have a future, with 78% of companies planning to use it in the future.

Wearable Devices

70% of manufacturers use some type of wearable device in their operations, and 62% plan to use them in the future. It’s not surprising to see more manufacturers using wearable devices more than 3D printers, but it is surprising to see less than two-thirds planning to use wearable devices down the line. Does this technology have a future in the industry?

Robotics and Connected Machinery (Internet of Things, or IoT)

Only 57% of manufacturers use industrial robotics technology and 56% currently use Internet-connected machinery. This doesn’t seem like it will increase in the future as only 36% indicate that they plan to use IoT machinery down the line.

Voice and Facial Recognition

Few manufacturers use these technologies, with 39% saying they use tablets with voice recognition and 27% saying they use facial recognition.

Drones

Drones are the least used technology out of what was surveyed, with only 19% currently using them and 36% saying they would in the future.

Virtual Reality

VR is more popular than expected, with 30% saying they use it and 36% planning to in the future.

Automation

Not surprisingly, 70% of manufacturing use some type of automation and many say that it greatly benefits their business through increased revenue, accuracy, customer service and productivity.

Learn More

We encourage you to check out the whole survey by Exact, you can also contact us here at The Yost Superior Co. to learn how we implement technology to help our customers.