Industrial equipment manufacturers today face unprecedented demands from their customers for more value in the products and services they provide. Meeting these increasing demands puts immense pressure on profit margins, forcing industrial equipment manufacturers to continuously improve both the products they offer and how they offer them.
It’s no longer enough for industrial equipment manufacturers simply to be good machine designers and builders. As their customers look for ways to reduce costs, many facets of equipment specification, production-line development, and maintenance have now been pushed upstream to equipment providers. Customers now demand more product customization and insist on value-add services such as line integration (pulling equipment makers and suppliers together to design and install lines), asset management, training, and leasing.