Last week, we published several summaries of recent articles covering the impact COVID-19 has had on manufacturing innovation. Because the pandemic has disrupted just about every aspect of society on a global scale, organizations are finding very creative ways to adapt in order to survive. Some of these innovations will affect manufacturing not just now, but far into the future. This week, we’ll look at another selection of articles documenting manufacturing innovation during COVID-19.
Industry Finds New Innovations to Stay Ahead of COVID-19
The way construction work gets done is rapidly evolving to meet the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. From maintaining social distancing on job sites to retooling existing manufacturing to meet increased demand from hospitals and sanitation, the industry is having to get more inventive at all levels. But quick turnarounds on new facilities and a surprising willingness to upend job site cultures is offering bright spots in an otherwise grim picture.
One of the biggest shifts in thinking is in reassessing how many interactions need to involve face-to-face meetings. Rental equipment deliveries are decidedly low-tech and up close, but steps are now being taken to reduce contact beyond shifting to mobile apps from paper documents. Equipment rental firms remain open as essential businesses that need to interact with their customers, so many have deployed practices to reduce contact and adhere to social distancing conventions. Read more…
Here’s how innovation could help car companies hit by COVID-19
Key takeaways from The World Economic Forum:
- Regulatory change in the automobile sector could help companies innovate and recover after the COVID-19 crisis.
- Many regulations in the industry are outdated and unsuited to inventions such as autonomous vehicles (AV), which include driverless cars and delivery vans.
- Now is the time to develop new, cohesive and dynamic regulations that provide companies with the certainty and clarity they need to invest in the future.
Read more…
Covid-19 has blown apart the myth of Silicon Valley innovation
The pandemic shows that the US is no longer much good at coming up with technologies relevant to our most basic needs.
Silicon Valley and big tech, in general, have been lame in responding to the crisis. Sure, they have given us Zoom to keep the fortunate among us working and Netflix to keep us sane; Amazon is a savior these days for those avoiding stores; iPads are in hot demand and Instacart is helping to keep many self-isolating people fed. But the pandemic has also revealed the limitations and impotence of the world’s richest companies (and, we have been told, the most innovative place on earth) in the face of the public health crisis.
Big tech doesn’t build anything. It’s not likely to give us vaccines or diagnostic tests. We don’t even seem to know how to make a cotton swab. Those hoping the US could turn its dominant tech industry into a dynamo of innovation against the pandemic will be disappointed. Read more…
Although we don’t know for certain what will happen over the next decade, or even in the immediate future, what we do know is that COVID-19 is now, and will continue to be, a catalyst for the transformation, and even the birth, of a huge number of industries, products, policies, services and procedures, many of which will have been the result of manufacturing innovation.
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