Industry association the Manufacturing Circle will again join forces with management consulting company A.T. Kearny for the international Factory of the Year competition at the 2019 Manufacturing Indaba.

The competition was officially launched for the first time in South Africa at last year’s Indaba. Participants benefit from independent, cross-industry performance feedback, enabling them to analyse their strengths and weaknesses and initiate tailored improvements.

The competition had been held internationally for more than 25 years, predominantly in Europe, with more than 2 000 factory participants over this period. A.T. Kearney chose to bring it to South Africa, as the country can benefit from improvement in manufacturing competitiveness.

Manufacturing Circle executive director Philippa Rodseth says the competition is important for the manufacturing sector because it broadens and raises the manufacturing sector profile.

“We have worked closely with A.T. Kearny to use the Manufacturing Indaba as the right platform to promote the competition and announce the winners of the competition. It is very important that the broader public has a better understanding of what different manufacturing businesses entail within the range of manufacturers in existence.”

She adds that it is equally important for the participants to see how they benchmark and compare with other manufacturers and industries globally.

Additionally, the Manufacturing Circle – a strategic partner for the Manufacturing Indaba – will play a fundamental role in coordinating the agenda as part of the steering committee to ensure that the content of the event and the participation of its members in the various sessions is relevant to industry.

“I look forward to seeing how the conversations have developed since last year. “There is an ongoing discussion on the impact of the Fourth Industrial Revolution on the manufacturing sector, for example. I am looking forward to hearing about the skills being developed, as well as productivity and competitiveness by our local manufacturers,” Rodseth comments.

Further, there is also an increased focus on assessing the country’s relationships with other African States to develop business and trade among one another.

The 2019 Manufacturing Indaba will take place at the Sandton Convention Centre, in Johannesburg, from June 25 to 26. Rodseth stresses the importance of such events, as they bring industry participants together and positively impact on the industry.

“From an industry and a government perspective, we often work in isolation, so it is important to join together once in a while, as far as new developments in the industry are concerned. “There is no silver bullet to growing manufacturing, so that is why the Manufacturing Indaba is there to connect all industry stakeholders.”