63.5% Of Manufacturers Surveyed Rank Strengthening Cybersecurity Posture as the Most Important Investment - Up 41 Percentage Points from 2024

ABI Research releases the results of its semiannual Manufacturers' Technology Adoption & Attitudes Survey

NEW YORK, April 1, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Global technology intelligence firm ABI Research recently completed its semiannual Manufacturers' Technology Adoption & Attitudes Survey, a comprehensive survey of 458 manufacturing decision-makers across the United States, Malaysia, and Germany to uncover real-world attitudes, adoption trends, and valuable insights that reflect the current technological landscape within the manufacturing industry. Key findings from the survey, presented in The State of Technology in the Manufacturing Industry report, reveal that manufacturers overwhelmingly view strengthening their cybersecurity posture as the most important investment for improving productivity.

"An interesting find from the survey is that 63.5% of manufacturers surveyed now say that improving their cybersecurity posture is the top investment necessary for improving productivity. When asked in the first wave of the survey in 2024, that number was only 21.9%. The recent CrowdStrike update, which caused a massive IT outage that crashed millions of Windows systems, brought security vulnerabilities to the fore. Increasing geopolitical tensions certainly play a part as well," explains Michael Larner, Distinguished Analyst at ABI Research.

Other high-level findings from The State of Technology in the Manufacturing Industry report:

• 84% of Germany's Greenfield facilities have achieved Modern Factory Maturity. Malaysian Brownfield facilities lag behind other regions at 31%, which reflects Malaysia's heavy investments in advanced areas with fewer investments in traditional or legacy areas.
• Manufacturers are increasingly embracing cloud solutions. 79% of manufacturers agree that cloud solutions offer clear benefits around decision-making, remote monitoring, and supply chain coordination.
• 44% of manufacturers are devising an implementation program or already rolling out private 5G, proving that Private 5G is beginning to take hold in the manufacturing space.
• 66% of respondents believe that Generative AI can help to optimize their production lines, and 74% believe Generative AI can accelerate the creation of worker instructions.
• 78% of respondents believe in the industrial metaverse's ability to fuel Research and Development (R&D) in conjunction with strategy, but belief in onboarding capabilities may be waning.
• 76% of Malaysian manufacturers agree that Private cellular technology enhances connectivity, ensuring reliability and secure communications.
• 78% of U.S. manufacturers see operational efficiencies and productivity as a strong benefit, reflective of labor savings and reduction of input costs, whether components or raw materials.
• 53.9% of manufacturers are increasingly prioritizing QMS systems as a priority investment to improve quality levels, firming up their view of which technologies can improve quality.
• 48% of manufacturers view the lack of expertise to fully grasp the potential of new technologies as a primary barrier to digital transformation.

"Innovation is the cornerstone of success in the manufacturing Industry, and making a robust technology strategy is essential. The survey results are arming technology vendors and end users with real-world and current technology attitudes, adoption rates, and insights to gain a competitive advantage in the rapidly evolving industrial and manufacturing landscape," Larner concludes.

Download the report, The State of Technology in the Manufacturing Industry, for Survey highlights.

ABI Research is now inviting a small set of participants to join our survey efforts as we launch the next wave of our semiannual survey targeting respondents in industrial and manufacturing companies. Shape the survey.

About ABI Research

ABI Research is a global technology intelligence firm uniquely positioned at the intersection of technology solution providers and end-market companies. We serve as the bridge that seamlessly connects these two segments by providing exclusive research and expert guidance to drive successful technology implementations and deliver strategies proven to attract and retain customers.

ABI Research是一家全球性的技术情报公司，拥有得天独厚的优势，充当终端市场公司和技术解决方案提供商之间的桥梁，通过提供独家研究和专业性指导，推动成功的技术实施和提供经证明可吸引和留住客户的战略，无缝连接这两大主体。

For more information about ABI Research's services, contact us at +1.516.624.2500 in the Americas, +44.203.326.0140 in Europe, +65.6592.0290 in Asia-Pacific, or visit www.abiresearch.com.

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Deborah Petrara
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SOURCE ABI Research