Freedom is generally defined as the power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint. The license to act as one pleases offers a host of benefits but can also produce consequences that limit your freedom. The same can be said of your manufacturing. The choices you make on people, machines, software, and technology come with both benefits and consequences.

In the manufacturing industry, one of the biggest constraints on freedom is getting stuck in yesterday—doing things the same way over and over because they’ve been successful in growing the business. However, success in the past doesn’t guarantee continued success in the future, especially when new technologies, processes, markets, and customer needs can change seemingly overnight.

The best, most successful manufacturers are those that define freedom as the ability to change, adapt, and improve for the common goal of growing. They see it as imperative for keeping up with the evolving industry and ever-changing customer needs. During conversations with many of these manufacturers, five common themes on developing and maintaining freedom were repeated.

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