Early adopters focus on the rewards of integrating advanced technologies into their manufacturing processes. They see the opportunity to jump ahead of the competition by improving quality, reducing costs, increasing flexibility, adding features, and speeding up production. Ultimately, they plan to—and generally will—grab market share.
The risks with these pursuits, however, can be equally significant, by diverting time and money that could be used for more modest, conservative advances. What do these early adopters do to swing the odds in their favor? Most will engage in proof-of-concept testing, which tests key technical challenges that could hamper the project’s success. This step precedes any work on the project and can usually be done quickly and cost effectively.
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