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A national research study to assess the progress of state manufacturers in adopting strategies to win in the global economy was launched by the MANTEC.  MANTEC is an organization that assists the manufacturers of South Central Pennsylvania to continuously and strategically strengthen their businesses.  The study is the first step in a long-term effort to help manufacturers weather today’s recession and improve manufacturing competitiveness over the next decade.

The web-based Next Generation Manufacturing Study questionnaire can be accessed at www.NGMStudy-Pennsylvania.com. Any manufacturing owner, CEO or senior level executive is eligible to participate.  Participation in the study is confidential and takes approximately 30 minutes to complete.  Participation also can be anonymous.  Deadline for participation is March 15.  Study participants will receive a customized benchmarking report comparing their progress to the overall results as well as to other respondents of similar revenue and number of employees. 

The study asks manufacturers to rank their progress toward the world-class performance benchmarks of Next Generation Manufacturing, a framework of strategies that will drive manufacturing growth and profitability in the 21^st century.  The elements of Next Generation Manufacturing are customer-focused innovation, systemic continuous improvement, advanced talent management, global engagement, extended enterprise management and sustainable products and processes.

“What we see here in the U.S. and around the globe is that the adoption of these strategies aligns with better business performance,” said John Brandt, CEO of the Manufacturing Performance Institute (MPI), a global research firm that is conducting the study.  Brandt said a recent Wisconsin study of more than 500 manufacturers confirmed the strong correlation between next generation strategies and readiness to compete globally.

 “After a Beta test survey of Wisconsin manufacturers, MANTEC is pleased to offer this opportunity to our state’s manufacturers to benchmark their practices for Next Generation capabilities and to voice concerns to the people that can help the most – the state and national governments and the programs they develop to assist manufacturers – the opinions could help change policies and increase funding to support manufacturing change and growth,” says John W. Lloyd, President and CEO of MANTEC.

The study is part of a national effort announced today by the American Small Manufacturers Coalition (ASMC) being spearheaded by 17 states.  “The adoption of Next Generation Manufacturing strategies represents an historic opportunity to strengthen and improve the nation’s manufacturing base and achieve a long-term competitive advantage across all industries and sectors,” said Mike Klonsinski, ASMC board chair. 

The study results will provide a wealth of valuable data for manufacturers, business leaders and state and national policymakers.  Manufacturers can see how they rank against world-class performance benchmarks and target improvements where needed.  Policymakers can strengthen and improve programs and services supporting manufacturers knowing where the critical needs are.  “The study results will provide a scorecard, and the scorecard will tell us what we need to do to improve,” Klonsinski said.  For example, a low score on global engagement may indicate to policymakers actions are needed to help manufacturers sell into overseas markets, he said.

Pennsylvania manufacturing ranks 6^th in private compensation in the nation, contributes 15% to the Pennsylvania Gross State Product and employs more than 658,000

For more information on the Next Generation Manufacturing Study, call Carol Morton Tebo, Director of Operations, at 717-843-5054 x240 or email her at carol@mantec.org.

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