Strategic Initiatives Build Global Innovation Networks in the Machinery and Industrial Products Industry

In the machinery and industrial products industry, increasing globalization and the need for greater collaboration with suppliers present manufacturers with intense challenges as well as rich opportunities. Competition from low-cost countries is requiring companies to become more innovative and to partner closely with far flung suppliers to both maintain and grow their businesses. Among the 20 percent of machinery and industrial products companies that are world leaders in their niche and the 50 percent who are among the top five in their sector, most executives agree that innovation is the key to success and prosperity in the global marketplace. Long-term growth of the industry has been encouragingly consistent over the last several years.