🚀 Shaping the Future - Issue 34
A Women In Manufacturing Special 🎉
📣 Happy International Women’s Day 2024 🎉
Happy International Women’s Day to all the amazing women in manufacturing!
Your hard work and dedication are making a real difference in our industry. We see you, we appreciate you, and we know that we need more of you. The Industry 4.0 Club remains committed to sharing your stories and inspire others to join us in shaping the future of manufacturing.
I’d like to also take a moment to honor the women behind the Industry 4.0 Club, we would not be where we are today without your help, support and dedication to our mission. March 8th is just one day, but our mission is ongoing. Let’s keep pushing for a manufacturing industry where every woman can thrive and succeed.
With admiration and gratitude,
Mike Ungar, CEO of the Industry 4. 0 Club
📚The State of Women in Manufacturing
Perspectives from Women on the Shop Floor [Institute For Women Policy Research]
Manufacturing employs one in ten workers in the United States but fewer than a third of workers are women, and women are particularly underrepresented in many higher-earning shop floor positions that typically do not require a four year college degree. This report draws on responses to the 2022 IWPR Women in Manufacturing Survey, which was specifically designed to capture the experiences of women working on the shop floor.
Women In Manufacturing: The Ball Is Rolling, Now It Must Go Faster [Forbes]
Boosting the long-term talent pipeline in this way is vital if manufacturing firms are to create a workforce with the breadth of technical and nontechnical capabilities required to reclaim their place as a leading power in the US economy and solve the widening skills gap at the same time. As these latest census figures show, there are reasons to believe a more gender-balanced workforce is within the industry’s grasp. The snowball is rolling. How fast it rolls and how big it gets depends on what manufacturers do next.
Stepping up to make an impact that matters [Deloitte]
Many outstanding women leaders are making huge strides in building and promoting the manufacturing industry and are demonstrating what modern manufacturing offers – rewarding and fulfilling careers with limitless opportunity for growth. Today’s manufacturing employees are building and designing the future, and women in manufacturing serve as ambassadors to move this industry forward.
Manufacturing Opens More Doors to Women [U.S Department of Commerce]
Among the ways the industry has been attracting more women and reducing the gender gap: by encouraging girls at a young age to study STEM subjects and changing the perception of women in manufacturing. For example, some universities offer college credits to girls in middle school and high school in manufacturing programs.
Don’t Settle for Less: 3 Ways to Get More Women in Manufacturing [Autodesk]
The good news is that change is starting to happen. It’s palpable in the flood of young women joining the maker movement and in the investment toy makers such as Goldieblox and K’NEX are making in young girls. The fact that “women in manufacturing” is being discussed at all is a significant step in the right direction. If the industry capitalizes on this forward momentum, along with evolving social attitudes about women and their abilities, it’s only a matter of time before that measly 30% figure is nothing more than a historical footnote.
👩🏭Female Spotlight: Yun Yao, CEO of Soralink
Yun Yao
Co-founder & CEO at Soralink
Yun Yao is an energetic professional brimming with creativity and ambition. In 2010, she co-founded Tactile Labs, a non-profit organization promoting haptic research. Her leadership in this initiative has fostered innovation and collaboration among researchers. After completing her Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from McGill University, Yun transitioned into industry, taking on the role of lead engineer for the design of wireless intercom systems.
In 2021, she co-founded Soralink, a company on a mission to make artificial intelligence-based predictive maintenance accessible and available to manufacturing companies by offering intelligent industrial machinery management solutions at an affordable cost.
Predictive maintenance is a rapidly growing field in the world of operations, aimed at maximizing the efficiency and lifespan of industrial equipment. With the rise of artificial intelligence and machine learning, predictive maintenance can revolutionize how we operate and maintain equipment, reducing downtime and improving overall productivity. Yun and her team are well-positioned to impact the manufacturing sector, turning Industry 4.0 aspirations into tangible realities while redefining the archetype of a typical manufacturing leader.
👋 Get Involved
The Industry 4.0 Club is a vibrant community, dedicated to shaping the future of manufacturing. We welcome everybody looking to make a meaningful impact in advancing Industry 4.0 and contribute to reshaping the manufacturing landscape.
We’re always looking for new contributors from all background for new perspective, ideas and to help to spread the word. You can contact us directly at info@industry40club.com with subject like “Getting Involved” and follow us on all social media (LinkedIn & Twitter) or donate to help fund the club’s activities.
🎤 Upcoming Events
🚨3rd Annual MX.0 Southeast
Returning to Greenville, SC, for the third year, the MX.0 Southeast event brings regional manufacturers together, equipping them with the necessary lessons and network to take the steps from Industry 3.0 to 4.0, and beyond. The M(anufacturing) X.0 agenda hosts national and regional manufacturers on stage who share practical, tried, and tested examples of ‘how to do’ digital transformation.
2024’s agenda brings case studies in change management, applying AI and Mixed Reality, rolling out Digital Twins, planning and scaling systems and processes, Cobots and Robots, tackling workforce problems, real-time data analytics, and much more.
💬 About Shaping the Future
Shaping the Future is Industry 4.0 Club’s official newsletter. We’ll be experiencing different formats over the coming weeks until we find the one that resonates the most with our members. You can help us improve by sharing feedback and suggestions. The newsletter will land in your inbox every Sunday morning; please subscribe to not miss anything and forward the email to someone you think would benefit from this.
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