OPERATIONS
“ INSTEAD OF SOLELY FOCUSING ON REDUCING COSTS, MANUFACTURERS SHOULD MEASURE THEIR OPERATIONAL AGILITY”
Bob Buttermore Senior Vice President and
Chief Supply Chain Officer Rockwell Automation
domain experts together, breaking down functional silos. To move from automation to autonomy, these operating teams need to work together to drive more efficient operations and continuous improvement. We also instituted a disciplined innovation framework to implement AI and digital technologies consistently across facilities, creating a scalable structure.
Q. HOW CLOSE IS FULLY AUTONOMOUS MANUFACTURING? WHAT’ S THE LAST BARRIER TO CROSS?
» Manufacturers generally sit somewhere on the autonomy maturity curve today. Organisations in the earlier stages focus on collecting and contextualising data so their teams understand what is happening, while those at the more advanced stages use that data to predict issues and recommend actions. However, reaching the highest level of autonomy – where systems automatically take action
74 September 2026