everyone has to work from home until 2022.’
What does that mean for the person who lives
with their parents and doesn’t have an offi ce
space, so works on their bed?
MM:
How do workplaces in the
UK di er to other countries in
their willingness to adapt the way
they operate?
CM:
It varies wildly. In Holland, for
instance, nobody works on a Wednesday
afternoon because schools fi nish early,
so employers refl ect that. Sweden is
another progressive market, and have
embraced something called activitybased
working – creating spaces that are
conducive to being used for certain tasks
at certain times.
On the fl ip side is the US. There,
companies must, by law, create
mothering rooms because they bring new
mums back from maternity leave so early
that they’re still breastfeeding. East Coast
America is particularly conservative when
it comes to work, and they will struggle
to adapt because their management
structures are based on presenteeism.
If you look at some of the workplace
software coming out of the US as an
indication, there’s stuff that literally monitors
exactly what people are doing on their laptops all
day – basically digital presenteeism.
MM: You’ve called for employers to make
an investment in a new way of working
when, for many, fi nances are tight. Why
should they consider exploring nontraditional
working methods?
CM: Part of the problem is that workplaces’ value
have only been measured on cost. It’s very hard to
calculate the value that a workplace can provide.
Often, if you look at the real estate industry and
everything that supports it, like FM or catering
or security, they’re quite often costed on the
number of people per square foot. That means
workplaces haven’t been invested in because
it’s diffi cult to justify the return. We’re looking
at ways of articulating a model to recognise
the value of investment through things like a
reduction of absenteeism or better staff retention.
There are challenges around quantifying that and
recognising the direct impact the workplace itself
will have on that data. Another challenge is time.
Many companies will be in a very tough fi nancial
situation and need fast decisions, but they must
be properly thought through.
There’s never been a burning platform like this
before, so it’s a chance to not just look at getting
people back to work in the same way as before,
but an opportunity to rip up old business and
estate models and really change the way we all
work. Now is the time to look at implementing
a change, but it must be managed properly, and
that’s the thing people always forget when it
comes to workplace change.
THE INTERVIEW SEPTEMBER 2020
Above: Keith
Tilley, CEO
of workplace
software
providers,
Intoware
Are out-of-date manual processes
holding your business back?
Keith Tilley, CEO of Intoware explains why
manufacturers must re-think their digital
strategies in the new working environment
The impact of COVID-19 has prompted many
businesses to take stock and look at implementing
new processes to replace manual, paper-based
operations. Remote working has also become
the new norm for o ce workers; but for many in
manufacturing this remains a major challenge as
it’s simply not practical or feasible.
Prior to the pandemic, manufacturing
already lagged behind other heavy industries
when it came to employees regularly working
from home, according to new ONS fi gures.
After all, factories still need sta to keep
machines running – it’s not currently possible
to do those jobs remotely.
The lockdown has forced many to reduce
the number of sta needed, so it’s only those
that have to operate machinery or the engineers that maintain
safe operations that are on the factory fl oor, while everyone
else works remotely. This means digitisation and remote
monitoring are increasingly being adopted to help ensure
plants remain optimised.
Enabling connected working
On the factory fl oor, digitisation and wearable technologies
featuring augmented (AR) reality make the remote monitoring
of machinery inspections to working out how to avoid
bottlenecks on the assembly line all possible.
AR works by allowing a remote worker to see the physical
world in video and annotate physical objects, using a mobile
phone, tablet or head-mounted device. The worker captures
every step of a production process by creating instructions for
others to follow, from a manufacturing plant here or on the
other side of the world.
By switching to digital instructions manufacturers can build
a huge bank of data for machine audits and also predict when
failures in manufacturing or assembly processes may occur.
More meaningful jobs
Another benefi t of increased digitisation of manual processes is
that employees don’t have to spend time on repetitive tasks, they
feel more satisfi ed and engaged in their work as they are freed up
for higher value tasks. Employees are more productive as a result,
which is better for business.
By taking action now to implement connected working
through increased digitisation, will not only aid your recovery
post the lockdown, but help you become more productive and
resilient in the future.
18 www.manufacturingmanagement.co.uk
/www.manufacturingmanagement.co.uk