In an industry where a few hours downtime can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, the impact of the current COVID-19 crisis has hit the manufacturing sector like a sledgehammer.

Crisis or not, manufacturing companies today are no strangers to extreme pressure and intense volatility owed to ever-shortening business and product lifecycles. The belts must keep moving, margins are constantly tightening, and the industry is looking to technology that enhances efficiency and drives productivity. But considerations go beyond:

Manufacturing companies are transforming from efficiency-oriented operations to resilient organizations driven by a tighter connection to their markets and customers, according to Kevin Prouty, VP, Energy and Manufacturing Insights at IDC.

Their decision making must be near real time and based on mass customization and customer experience [CX], whether a physical product, a performed service, or a sales engagement.

At the heart of this technology: automation. Manufacturers want robots, autonomous vehicles and fewer cables they want to be quicker, more agile; they want to minimize (if not entirely eliminate) downtime and gain the flexibility they need to scale and react to market changes with agility.

But they also want to ensure their workforces arent replaced, but upskilled and agile in order to work in concert with machines in these new, smart powerhouses.

It is for this reason that manufacturers are now placing their confidence in forward-thinking firms like Rockwell Automation, a true world-heavyweight that now plays a central role in the digital transformation of the manufacturing sector in more than 100 countries worldwide.

At Rockwell Automations Digital Transformation Virtual Forum, May 26, a team of diverse specialists will explore innovative, digital-first solutions that will span three core aspects of modern industrial operations.

Leveraging 25 years of automation and process control sales and marketing experience in Asia Pacific, John Watts, Regional Sales Director of Information Software, Pacific Rim, will illustrate how companies can keep their systems operational in times of crisis, and become more resilient to future interruption.

Attendees will learn about Manufacturing Excellence from Kriengsak Parsurakul, Industrial Control & Power Control Manager, Southeast Asia, navigating how to maximize output and utilization of key assets, and leverage predictive maintenance functionality to actively reduce unplanned downtimes.

In connected factories, the threat of cyberattacks has become a new and fearsome foe. Debraj Chakraborty, Business Development Manager for Network Security & Services, Southeast Asia, will tackle how next-generation remote assistance tools and managed remote services are becoming airtight.

Lastly, Javier Garcia Lopez, Business Development Manager of Information Software, will explore and lend solutions to the complexities unique to the automated industrial enterprise workforce and how employees can be constantly developed and upskilled with new approaches such as virtual and AR-based training.

Find out more about the interactive Digital Transformation Virtual Forum today. Attendees registering using the following link will also receive a complimentary copy of the industry-leading IDC FutureScape: Worldwide Manufacturing 2020 Predictions Report.

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Crisis or not learn how next-gen manufacturing rumbles on, live with Rockwell Automation - Tech Wire Asia