Although technology is an important pillar of organizations’ competitiveness, people remain essential on shop floors and will continue to be so in the future. Manufacturing is more than a sum of subtasks that can simply be taken over by robots; people are needed to take charge not only of developing groundbreaking products but also of controlling, troubleshooting and executing complex operations.

To remain competitive in today’s increasingly complex manufacturing landscape, companies need to move beyond an automation narrative and consider the empowering role of augmentation. This involves placing the workforce at the centre of discussions, creating a more accessible and inclusive work environment, increasing employees’ well-being and fostering human connection and collaboration.

This white paper illustrates how augmentation technologies assist the workforce and amplify human abilities to enable a future of industrial work that is not only more productive but also more accessible, inclusive and sustainable. Ultimately, manufacturing and value chains need to shape what Klaus Schwab, Founder and Executive Chairman of the World Economic Forum, calls “a future that works for all by putting people first, empowering them and constantly reminding ourselves that all of these new technologies are first and foremost tools made by people for people”.1