The Manufacturing Performance Institute just finished a study entitled 2011 Next Generation Manufacturing Study that focused on awareness, best practices and achievements related to the 6 key strategies listed below.
Customer focused innovation: Develop, make amd market new products and services that meet customers' needs at a pace faster than the competition.
Engage people/human-capital acquisition, development and retention; Secure a competitive performance advantage by having superior systems in place to recruit, hire, develop and retain talent.
Superior processes/improvement focus: Record annual productivity and quality gains that exceed the competition through a companywide commitment to continuous improvement.
Supply-chain management and collaboration: Develop and manage supply chains and partnerships that provide flexibity, response time, and delivery performance that exceed the competition.
Sustainability: Design and implement waste and energy-use reductions at a level that provides superior cost performance and recognizable customer value.
Global Engagement: Secure business advantages by having people, partnerships, and systems in place capable of engaging global markets and talents better than the competition.