02.11.2020
A digital skills account to provide employees with access to life-long learning needed alongside a National Skills Taskforce to develop a digital skills programme – Make UK/Sage analysis.
- 91% of manufacturers have benefited from the adoption of new technology during recent pandemic crisis
- A quarter say it boosted their productivity and 12% said it increased the rate of production
- 8/10 manufacturers now plan to continue using the technologies they have adopted
- 87% of manufacturers who had undertaken digital training in the last 12 months say it put them at an advantage
- However, a third of companies have not invested in any digital training in the last year
- Two-thirds of manufacturers think education and training system is not keeping pacing with the adoption of new digital technologies
- Investment in digital skills can be a great leveller, allowing more and more businesses to realise the potential of new technologies to boost productivity
Some 91% of those manufacturers benefitted from adopting new digital technologies during the crisis. And eight out of ten companies said they would continue to adopt new working practices having seen the quick benefits. A quarter of companies polled found utilising new digital technologies had boosted productivity and 12% said it had increased production levels.
In the past few months, it is those new skills which enabled the quick adoption of digital to deliver the remote production and monitoring systems which kept vital lines working effectively, virtual trade exhibitions and the use of 3D avatars for sustainable sampling and virtual commissioning. The use of digital was also found to accelerate innovation plans.
Worryingly, two-thirds of manufacturers do not think the education and training system is keeping pace with digital technology advancements – indicating a serious lag between the UK’s ambitions to be a world leader in digital adoption and our skills and training system delivering what is needed.