Global manufacturers focused on innovation, supply chains to drive growth, says survey

Manufacturers are operating in an environment of disruptive complexity, where the confluence of factors such as intense competition, pricing pressures, and new technologies are forcing companies to evaluate business models and growth strategies, according to the 2015 KPMG Global Manufacturing Outlook (GMO) survey.

In surveying 386 senior manufacturing executives globally, KPMG found that manufacturers see investing in breakthrough technologies as a "must do," with more than two-thirds of respondents confirming they are focused on long-term innovation strategies. In addition, respondents clearly indicated an expectation for increased investment in R&D and the new manufacturing technologies.

Forty-four percent of global KPMG GMO survey respondents say they will allocate more than 20 percent of their total technology budgets on systems to improve the pace and value of innovation (engineering, manufacturing, and supply chain) in the next year. U.S. respondents were more bullish, with 62 percent saying they will allocate more than 20 percent of the technology budget to drive innovation.

"Innovation waits for no one. Those who fail to embrace the new reality of the accelerating innovation cycle will quickly be left behind," said Jeff Dobbs, KPMG's global head of industrial manufacturing. "Investing more in R&D is certainly helpful, but manufacturers need to also focus on continuously enhancing and adapting their innovation models if they hope to survive."

Eighty-one percent of global respondents (78 percent in the U.S.) are adopting more collaborative business models with suppliers and customers to improve the value of their innovation investments—up from 68 percent in KPMG's 2014 survey.

Almost half of all respondents cited lowering costs and working capital levels as their top strategic supply chain priorities. When asked to rate their top supply chain challenges, respondents said that a lack of flexibility and responsiveness to changes in demand or product mix is the most frequent issue; this is followed by concerns relating to supplier performance (in terms of risk, reliability, and quality) and ensuring sufficient supplier capacity to meet demand and best support new product launches.

Just eight percent of U.S. respondents said they have complete visibility into their supply chain. In fact, U.S. respondents were almost twice as likely to say their supplier data is not reliable enough and that their technology is not sophisticated enough for greater integration.