This report presents the findings of an expert survey on the future of manufacturing. The survey was part of the MASTT2040 which aims to explore and guide transitions within the European manufacturing sector through the concept of Manufacturing as a Service (MaaS) until 2040.
The survey focused on the impact of 19 trends – identified by the MASTT2040 Consortium Team during the previous stage of the project – on the future of manufacturing. In the survey, the manufacturing stakeholders from 10 European countries had a chance to assess key trends and their potential to:
- Impact the future of manufacturing – the goal was to check which of the trends could be the most impactful for the future of manufacturing;
- Foster MaaS, contract manufacturing or centralized manufacturing – the goal was to check whether the trends may support or hinder the adoption of MaaS models compared to traditional manufacturing approaches;
- Foster the Twin Transition – the goal was to check the potential of the trends to drive progress towards the EU’s goals for digitalization and sustainability in manufacturing.
While assessing the trends’ impact on the future of manufacturing, the experts used the scale from 0 (no influence) to 10 (extremely strong influence). During the assessment of trends’ ability to foster MaaS, contract manufacturing or centralized manufacturing, the stakeholders used the scale from -3 (continuation of this trend is a major obstacle to further use of the model) through 0 (neutral to further use of the model) to 3 (continuation of this trend is extremely favorable to the wider use of the model). While assessing the trends’ ability to foster the Twin Transition, the experts used a scale from -3 (trend is extremely harmful to the goals of the Twin Transition) through 0 (neutral to the goals of the Twin Transition) to 3 (trend could be a major driver of the Twin Transition).