Last week, MTA hosted the CECIMO General Assembly; delegates from the machine tool industry across Europe took part in a range of policy discussions and together with eminent speakers from the political and business arena, European Machine Tool producers debated key sectoral issues such as digital transformation, supply chain disruptions, standardisation issues, and sustainability.
The theme of the meetings was Shaping the Future of Manufacturing and on this topic the delegates discussed the impact of digital transformation on the industry, highlighting the challenges and opportunities that this transition brings to businesses operating in the manufacturing sector. A dominant theme during the conference was the importance of deeper cooperation between industry players and policy makers in a sector that innovates at a faster pace than ever. Understanding and anticipating how pioneering technologies, innovative business models, and new partnerships are transforming businesses and governments’ is of paramount importance for the future of the sector. Speakers also highlighted the importance of supporting SMEs in adopting new technologies to ensure a seamless transition towards a digital and green economy.
As an outcome of the economic presentations, CECIMO outlined that in a time of geopolitical challenges, alongside other disruptive factors that shake global economies, Europe’s Machine Tool (MT) sector continues its recovery in 2022. Data collected by CECIMO shows that machine tool production grew by +11.6% in 2021, although this is in the context of an increase of +19.7% for the global total.
Expectations for 2022 are strong, driven by the total orders index reaching an all-time high in the 1st quarter of the year. This will bolster production and the outlook is for orders to continue at a strong level. The main challenge to the industry is seen as the move away from internal combustion engines to electric propulsion.
You can find the full Press Release on the event at https://www.cecimo.eu/news/the-european-machine-tools-industry-bounces-back-despite-an-uncertain-global-market/ and there is a summary of the economic data in the file below. If you would like the full economic report, please contact Geoff Noon at MTA (email: [email protected]).