Machine engineering: The top 5 trends in 2023

Machine engineering: various construction sites and challenges

Machine engineering under pressure in 2023. On the one hand, this is the result of worldwide crises and on the other hand the persisting lack of skilled workers. In this environment, the Association of German Machine Engineering Enterprises VDMA, looking back at 2022, has identified minor growth in actual production equaling one percent.  In 2023, however, it projects a decline by two percent.

"It's a long way from the setbacks of earlier years and shows how robust our industry is," comments VDMA President Karl Haeusgen, who presented the forecasts at the association's annual press conference in December 2022. These observations match the outcome of a VDMA flash survey that promises a slight improvement in the supply chains: of the companies surveyed, 74 percent stated that their business activities are being impaired by bottlenecks. In June 2022, 87 percent arrived at this conclusion. Nonetheless, the deficient resource supplies remain a dominant factor in the industry.

This, according to Haeusgen, also applies to the slow growth in China, the inflation and the consequences of the war in Ukraine. This is further compounded by the homemade problem of lack of skilled labor. A survey conducted by the association had 97 percent of the companies indicate that they are suffering from staff shortages. In 2023, 54 percent aim to fill new jobs. Currently, the sector machine engineering has 14,000 vacancies. What makes this situation even more complex is that many babyboomers are retiring from the workforce.
 

Forecast: The 5 most important trends and technologies in 2023

Hence, the situation in machine engineering is still tough. If companies aim to overcome the difficulties, they will have to deploy strategic and innovative solutions. Here are five examples of machine engineering trends and technologies to focus on in 2023.
 

1. Sensors: Components equipped with sensors will be a key element in the Internet of Things (IoT). These make it possible to record the environmental scenarios of machines, to integrate them into a central network and to analyze them in central computers.

In conjunction with digitization, this technology is becoming increasingly important. For instance, it does not only help with the precise production of work pieces, but also with the localization and the allocation to certain customers. It also optimizes the production processes and thus leads to more high quality and less costly products. And: In combination with Artificial Intelligence, sensor technology makes it possible to recognize patterns and to detect damages to systems or to prevent them early-on.
 

2. Digital-Twins: The Digital-Twins concept is closely affiliated with sensor technology.  Based on the data delivered by sensors and other measuring tools, the computer generates digital three-dimensional depictions of actual machines and components.   These digital twins possess the same properties as actual models.

What is the advantage? Digital twins make it possible to replicate various processes on the computer or to similate them. As a result, expensive experiments and series of tests in the actual environment are rendered redundant. Moreover, it is possible to observe the processes from several points of view than this would be possible in standard simulations under real time conditions. The effect: Digital Twins are an important step on the way to automation and thus to Smart Factory environments. They have the capacity to improve the quality and efficiency of processes and to more easily process as well as manufacture customer specific products. 
 

3. Maschine park as a subscription model: In some cases, the procurement of machines is highly cost intense and therefore affiliated with huge loans.  Given rising interest rates, this is a financial challenge, especially for many small and medium sized companies. The subscription model offers a way out. Large systems are no longer purchased, but instead leased at comparably low costs. The company pays for the provision and use of capacities. This is easy on the company's cashflow.

This is important given that in 2021, numerous companies already encountered difficulties paying. According to Statista  93 bankruptcy proceedings were initiated in machine engineering in Germany.
 

4. Recycling: Sustainability remains a critical factor in machine engineering. This also includes the recycling component. This model aims at extending the deployment cycles of products and raw materials to an absolute maximum. This may, for instance, be achieved through sharing, leasing, recycling, repairing and remedying.

Machine engineering has the potential of benefitting doubly from applied recycling. One the one hand, this will make the industry less dependent on volatile commodities markets and allows for cost reductions.  On the other hand this sends environmental protection evidence to customers and also demonsrates corporate social responsibility.  The following applies to the implementation: The more digitized a business is and the more processes it integrates into technology, the easier and more effective the implementation will be.
 

5. Proximity to the customer: The crises have amplified the battle for orders. Given that these circumstances also affect customers, their demands of vendors increase as well. More customer proximity can therefore be an advantage when it comes to developing long term and lasting relationships. That's why the focus is increasingly on service.

To accommodate this trend in machine engineering agility when handling customer concerns is key. This does not only mandate quicky responses to inquiries, but also a solid basis of customer data as well as networked corporate structures. Digitization has the potential to make respective contributions. One keyword is Predictive-Maintenance. Thanks to remote repair tools, the time consumed by customer concerns can be significantly reduced.  This benefits buyers since it cuts their costs. Hence, the use of databased service solutions is an important factor when it comes to getting closer to the customer.