Top 3 Trends in the Manufacturing Industry 2024!

There are many challenges within the manufacturing industry. Increased demands for mass customization, labor shortage, pressure to streamline the assembly line, tough sustainability goals, and increased costs are just a few challenges manufacturers are facing. Yet, these challenges pave the path for innovation as we strive to boost efficiency simultaneously as new technologies continue to emerge. In this article, we highlight 3 trends to keep a lookout for in 2024: Automation and Robotics, Smart Factory, and Modular/Scalable solutions.

Automation and Robotics

During 2023, the manufacturing industry was faced with the significant challenge of labor shortages which is expected to be a continuous issue going into 2024. To deal with this shortage, an increasing number of manufacturers are looking for automation and robotics solutions to sustain or increase the efficiency of their processes and decrease the need for manual labor.

The global market for material handling robots (AGVs and AMRs) is expected to reach approximately 20 billion USD in 2028 with growth rates of around 22% for AGVs and 37% for AMRs. By implementing automated solutions, such as AGVs and AMRs, manufacturers can be sure to increase efficiency, safety, flexibility, and accuracy whilst decreasing labor costs and reducing downtime. ?

In addition to labor shortages, another driving force behind the adoption of automation in manufacturing is the increasing demand for mass customization. Consumers today expect products to be tailored to their specific needs and preferences, which puts pressure on manufacturers to be more flexible in their production processes. Automation, particularly through the use of AGVs and AMRs, allows for greater flexibility in production lines, enabling manufacturers to efficiently handle diverse product variations and rapidly adapt to changing market demands.

Smart Factory

A "smart factory" is a manufacturing facility that incorporates advanced technologies such as Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, data analytics and 5G to enhance efficiency, productivity, and flexibility in production processes. These technologies enable real-time monitoring, predictive maintenance, autonomous operation, and seamless communication between machines, systems, and humans.

The goal of a smart factory is to optimize manufacturing operations, reduce downtime, minimize waste, and enable faster response to market demands, ultimately leading to improved quality, cost-effectiveness, and competitiveness in the industry. Smart factories are part of Industry 4.0 which is changing the way we work with manufacturing processes and aims to revolutionize traditional manufacturing paradigms by integrating digital technologies across the entire value chain, from design and production to supply chain management and customer engagement.

The benefits of investing in “smart factory” are many, including productivity and efficiency, safety, and product quality to mention a few, which help manufacturers to meet consumer expectations and meet the challenges of economic uncertainty. The global market size for smart factory implementation will according to Statista grow from $154B in 2019 to $244B in 2024.

Modular/Scalable Solutions

An increasing trend is to have material transportation solutions that are easily adjustable for companies to stay competitive and quickly meet changing needs. Efficiency, scalability, and adaptability have become increasingly important elements for companies within the manufacturing industry as it allow for processes to be more flexible. For example, with adjustable material handling carts, operators are not bound to transport only one type of material but can change the structure of the fleet rather than replacing new equipment as new materials need to be transported. Thus, modular designs with standardization allow for the same components to be used for different types of materials, which minimizes waste, lowers production costs, increases sustainability, and provides a more cost-effective manufacturing process.

How can FlexQube help you overcome your challenges in 2024?

FlexQube’s innovative material handling solutions address the key challenges and trends facing the manufacturing industry, providing manufacturers with the flexibility, efficiency, and adaptability required to thrive in an increasingly competitive market environment. As adjustability, scalability, and flexibility are the core elements in all our solutions, we can offer our customers a modular mechanical cart system that can be integrated with our AGV- and AMR-system. By standardizing components across different material handling solutions, FlexQube enables manufacturers to optimize their warehouse operations while maintaining a cost-effective and sustainable approach.

We create and develop three product families with a large number of different variants which together provide our customers with a unique and complete system for material presentation and transport.

FlexQube Cart system

The FlexQube Cart System is the world’s first global and flexible concept for internal material handling carts. Instead of welding carts together you can use our concept to bolt carts and racks together. This makes them adjustable and possible to re-configure. We introduce our robust concept to the most globalized companies in the world that today use suppliers in an extremely fragmented market of similar equipment.

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FlexQube AGV system

Flexibility is key to modern factories and warehouses. FlexQube AGV System is an internal logistics automation solution designed to follow a pre-determined path with customized variations. The FlexQube AGV System is a standalone system that offers unlimited customizable cart variations, and that can be up and running within 60 minutes. Designed to accommodate you, your processes, and operators, with no need to change your existing infrastructure or material handling fleet.

FlexQube AMR system

The FlexQube AMR System consists of one standardized, non-load carrying, robot that can dock with an ecosystem of motorized load-carriers, each customized to accommodate various types of materials. It’s smart, simple and always ready to expand with new carriers and robots as your business grows.

Are you interested to learn how we can help you optimize your processes in 2024? Contact us HERE.