South Africa’s manufacturing sector experienced a four-month slump as of February this year, owing to continuous bouts of loadshedding, and exacerbated by rising costs and interest rates. 

Global consulting firm Kearney principal Frances Phillips says this makes it even more relevant and accelerates the need to identify gaps and improvements within the manufacturing sector, which is exactly what the Factory of the Year competition seeks to achieve.

The Factory of the Year competition is a global benchmarking contest for companies in the manufacturing sector.

The competition was initiated by Kearney in 1992 and debuted in South Africa in 2018.

This was done through a collaboration between Kearney, the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition, research organisation the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, the Manufacturing Circle and industry event the Manufacturing Indaba.

The competition presents an opportunity for South African manufacturing companies to understand and analyse their strengths and weaknesses in comparison to global and local benchmarks and initiate improvements.

“We should all be looking at ways to kickstart this sector right now and this is the important and real role that this contest can play,” says Phillips. 

New manufacturing technologies and methods of production are constantly emerging, transcending previous limitations and facilitating greater interconnectivity, monitoring and efficiency of resource use.

This presents both significant threats, as well as exciting opportunities, for the manufacturing sector in South Africa.

“The bar for competitive manufacturing is constantly evolving, with companies using advanced technologies and big data to improve their performance. The Factory of the Year competition identifies sector leaders and rewards excellence in manufacturing operations,” says Phillips.

To apply to the Factory of the Year competition, manufacturers are encouraged to download the questionnaire by visiting the South African Factory of the Year website and clicking on the Apply tab.

Manufacturers have until July 31 to submit their completed questionnaires.

“Hundreds of companies have participated and benefited from the independent, cross-industry feedback provided through the competition. The input has enabled them to analyse their strengths and weaknesses and initiate immediate improvements,” says Phillips.