Many manufacturing driven industries – particularly in lower margin, global industries such as steel, machinery manufacturing, and forest products -- are increasingly competitive and thus highly cost-sensitive. Moreover, costs of inputs have recently been rising, for example in metals, costs for copper and nickel have more than doubled since 2002. As a result, manufacturers are focused on innovations that reduce raw materials usage.

Competition in manufacturing and process-intensive industries is likely to intensify. This will drive further demand for technologies that increase manufacturing efficiencies and productivity – technologies that provide real time information and analysis, automate production processes, and streamline operations.

Technologies that lower costs and raw materials inputs, and improve end product quality and performance, are of particular value to industrial and manufacturing companies. These innovations are regularly coming to market, given the trillions of dollars in existing plants that can be made more efficient.