Page 39 - BusinessWest March 3, 2021

Keeping Pace
Five Manufacturing Trends to Watch in 2021
Both the immediate and long-term future of the manufacturing industry will be defined by the development of
a number of ever-evolving and prominent trends, according to the Assoc. of Equipment Manufacturers. These trends are poised to have a significant impact in 2021 (and, in many cases, beyond), so it’s critically impor- tant for manufacturers to develop a keen
“It remains critical for manufacturers to provide training and resources to employees as they try to maximize productivity from afar.”
understanding of what they are, how they will grow over time, and how they will impact the industry and the customers it serves.
COVID-19 and Employee Safety
It almost goes without saying that workplace safety and compliance with CDC guidelines and OSHA regulations (along with local safety mea- sures) will remain front of mind for manufactur-
Asnuntuck
Continued from page 38 called this
the ‘trifecta’ — Asnuntuck was using its flexible programs, its year-round schedule, and its new advanced-manufacturing center with its up-to- date equipment to reach three groups: workers and high-school students, as well as more tradi- tional community-college students.”
That outreach is a constant challenge, Bidwell said, noting that, while outdated perceptions about today’s manufacturing floors — which many older people believe are dirty and unsafe — are changing, they do persist, and work needs to be done to get young people interested.
“I think it’s better than it was, but we’re not there 100%,” she said of the perception problem, adding that many companies market themselves online with videos taken on their clean, high-tech floors. “We are getting a younger population than we did years ago, but we’re still going around the state, trying to educate as much as we can. Guid- ance counselors are a big piece in high school. We need guidance counselors talking up manufactur- ing, and they have to understand it themselves. We’ve definitely made strides in that.”
Educating parents about what these careers really entail is part of the process as well, she added.
“There’s a big push in high school now, but
we want to get the middle schools, to get young people aware of manufacturing and create those career pathways. We’re looking at the inner cities, where there’s a lot of population, and the message is, ‘these are viable careers where you can sustain a family and have a good, livable wage.’”
Bonvillian believes Asnuntuck and similar pro-
ers as 2021 gets under way. With COVID-19 cases on the rise in many parts of the world, organiza- tions will need to continue to be vigilant in their efforts to protect employees. Doing so, however, requires a significant investment of time, effort, and resources on the part of company leaders.
While an efficient rollout of an effective vac- cine for COVID-19 would bode well for an even- tual return to normalcy for the manufacturing industry, the impact of such a rollout won’t be felt for some time. In the interim, organizations will need to continue practicing social distancing in the workplace, restricting visitors to facilities, encouraging the practice of good hygiene, and ensuring employees are healthy and fit for work before allowing them on the job.
It’s been nearly a year since the COVID-19 pandemic took hold in the U.S., and it remains
a major challenge for manufacturers across the country and around the world. While companies do have plans and protocols in place to combat the virus, adhering to them and ensuring the health and well-being of employees is — and will continue to be — no small task.
Connected Workforce
The desire to equip workers with technology capable of allowing them to connect and collab- orate from a distance has long been on a trend
on the rise within the manufacturing industry. As older generations continue to leave the work- force and are replaced by younger employees, and the rise of the big-data era in manufactur- ing takes shape, finding tools and technologies to make an increasingly spread-out and remote workforce as productive as possible is a top pri- ority for companies today.
As a recent article from McKinsey explained, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has led to an increased reliance on digital collaboration to establish and maintain a connected manufactur- ing workforce. An increased emphasis on safety and changes to work processes, in an effort to maintain social distancing and minimize physi- cal contact, has led organizations of all types and sizes to adopt cutting-edge ways to allow for workers to communicate and interact virtually.
While the widespread impact of the pan- demic has caused this trend (and the adoption rate of related tools and technologies) to grow, it remains critical for manufacturers to provide training and resources to employees as they
try to maximize productivity from afar. Why? Because doing so is poised to pay off over time. According to McKinsey, “by digitizing processes to improve equipment management and opti-
Trends
Continued on page 49
tions and helping peo- ple understand college and career oppor- tunities they might not have considered, Bidwell said.
“We want more people to take advan- tage of all that com- munity colleges have available. We see it in manufacturing, but also IT — there’s a big need for IT profession- als, and for healthcare professionals.”
And she doesn’t expect any dip in
opportunity for students — young or older — who want to explore the modern manufacturing world.
“There’s really a lot of energy in Connecticut, and in Western Mass., right over the border,” Bidwell said. “The plan is to get out of this [pan- demic] and keep growing, and be ready for the demand when things turn around.” u
Joseph Bednar can be reached at [email protected]
ACC has had students on campus part-time in a hybrid model since the fall.
grams can help satisfy the demand for educating a workforce that has been impacted this past year, and not just in manufacturing.
“The COVID crisis is hitting hard at some important sectors like retail and hospitality, and workers there may well need to find new work,” he said. “The U.S. needs to prioritize training more workers more quickly than the country’s current disconnected approach to workforce edu- cation allows.”
Opportunity Awaits
The connection that First Lady Jill Biden has to community colleges — and her advocacy for them — is important, too, in changing percep-
MANUFACTURING
MARCH 3, 2021 39
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