Where are all the workers? That’s the question that many manufacturing leaders are asking right now, as labour shortages and skill deficits put the brakes on their ambitions for post-pandemic recovery.
New ideas and bold thinking are urgently needed, given the extent of these problems. Labour shortages are creeping upwards in the European Union and manufacturing companies report that it’s getting harder to hire. At the same time, 79 per cent report skills shortages, according to a 2020 report from technology industry trade body Digital Europe. “New graduates lack work-ready competences. Experienced ones got trained in a pre-digital, traditional manufacturing world,” write the report’s authors.
The pressure is on for manufacturing companies to offer better and more satisfying jobs, and to equip workers with the skills and training they need to perform them. Augmented reality (AR) technology could be an important part of that picture – but only if the employee...