This is article is part of a series of monthly articles produced by Harbour Results for PMA’s MetalForming Business Edge e-newsletter. Click here to view the full collection of articles.

The PMA Metalforming Insights, powered by Harbour Results and Plante Moran, continues to deliver valuable data and information for the metalforming industry to manage the chaos impacting the manufacturing industry. We had strong participation in the Q1 and Q2 studies, which indicates the study results are beneficial to members. In addition, the Q2 HR and Operations survey is complete, and analysis and the final report will be to participants soon. However, we wanted to share some insights today. 

The data from 97 facilities indicates that despite all the supply chain and talent challenges, the metalforming industry continues to be optimistic. Additionally, utilization continues to rise from 57% in Q1 to 65% in Q2 and the year-end forecast is up to 69%, despite lead times for metal. This utilization forecast is above nearly all other manufacturing processes, including plastics processors – who are being impacted by resin shortages – and die casting.

Not surprisingly, the top concerns of those surveyed in Q2 remained the same as Q1 – raw material pricing and availability, and access to labor. These issues continue to plague the industry and it appears they will continue through 2021 and into 2022.

The study focused on the manufacturing workforce and uncovered that many shops feel as if they are addressing the talent shortage, but there is more that can be done. Just over half of the study respondents indicated they have dedicated HR professionals and even less are utilizing marketing to attract new hires. Results also indicated the industry has an opportunity to drive diversity into its workforce. Although not necessarily a cause and effect, companies that are more diverse appear to have improved performance.

In addition to workforce questions and traditional benchmarking on quality and delivery, the Q2 survey sought to dig deeper into operations performance.  New to the study this year is the exploration of manufacturing complexity and its correlation with efficiency and profitability.  The study also sought to understand any differences between shops that are predominantly high volume versus low volume.

The Results Are In

Those PMA members who participated in the Metal Forming Insights – Q2 HR and Operations Study will be receiving a custom analysis in July. It’s not too late to benefit from this member benefit. The Q3 Study focused on sales, marketing and forecasting will be live in the middle of August. We encourage all PMA members to participate in this important benchmarking study.

About the author: 

Jason C. Brewer, a director at Harbour Results, helps clients develop competitive business strategies based on sound studies of their existing and potential markets, aligning their go-to-market activities and driving their operations to meet or exceed benchmark performance. In addition to over a decade of experience consulting manufacturers to drive profitable growth, Jason has held management and executive positions in business development and strategy. He is a certified Strategic Management Professional (SMP) by the Association for Strategic Planning.