How are Manufacturing Supply Chains Building Resilience?

Fictiv and MISUMI Group have released the 11th Annual State of Manufacturing & Supply Chain Report, exploring how the industry is operating amid volatility.

The past few years has seen market shifts and geopolitical instability reshape how products are designed, sourced and built.

Following this disruption, the report explores what leaders are doing to manage these changes and how the industry is building resilience.

Navigating turbulence

Global supply chains have been reshaped dramatically over the last few years, driven by market changes, geopolitical instability and climate change. Businesses have began to rethink their operations, looking towards supplier diversification, near-shoring, AI and more in order to build operational resilience amid uncertainty.

Major events such as war, trade rerouting, tariffs, extreme weather and inflation have been contributing towards market instability over the years, forcing businesses around the world to change their strategy in order to stay afloat and lead the charge. 

To explore how businesses are navigating these turbulent waters and operating alongside their new supply chains, Fictiv and MISUMI surveyed 300 senior supply chain and manufacturing leaders for the 11th Annual State of Manufacturing & Supply Chain Report. 

Fictiv is a global manufacturing and supply chain company, helping companies around the world grow to scale. With the help of Fictiv, businesses gain access to high-quality production, optimise their logistics and mitigate supply chain risk. 

MISUMI is a leading supplier and manufacturer of mechanical components and services. Together, these companies offer a unified digital manufacturing platform which connects prevision, speed and reliability with design. 

The report utilised responses from more than 30 surveyed qualified individuals at the director level or higher. These leaders work across engineering, supply chain, production manufacturing, R&D or digital innovation roles. They operate across the production of goods in clean energy, electric vehicles, robotics or medtech industries.

"Global manufacturing has entered a new phase where quality, compliance, and transparency are non-negotiable," says Ryusei Ono, Representative Director and President at MISUMI. 

"This research reflects what we see across our customer base: a growing expectation for consistent performance at scale amid increasing regional, regulatory, and technological complexity."

All supply chain, procurement and logistics leaders should attend:

• Supply Chain LIVE: The Net Zero Summit - QEII Centre, London, March 4-5
• Supply Chain LIVE: The US Summit - Navy Pier, Chicago, April 21-22

Co-located with Procurement & Sustainability LIVE, these events bring together COOs, CSOs, and senior decision-makers at a moment when supply chains and commercial performance are increasingly interconnected.

The role of AI

AI adoption has become a main role of supply chain strategy and manufacturing operations. It is now being viewed as a requirement for maintaining operational reliability and competitiveness in a market facing high demand. 

Exploring internal operations, 83% of engineers report spending four or more hours every week on procurement-related workflows, demonstrating an opportunity for efficiency gains. Alongside this, 93% of leaders say productivity improves when administrative tasks are offloaded, exploring that these tasks have an impact on workforce operations.

As a result, the data demonstrates that leaders recognise the challenges hindering productivity, with a need to build long-term performing supply chains and streamlined operations. Alongside this high-level of administration tasks, supply chains are also facing rising complexity across the production lifecycle. Manufacturing planning was cited as the main challenge for balancing cost, quality and time-to market, followed by production, sourcing, design and demand forecasting.

"97% of leaders are saying AI is already embedded in core workflows," comments Nate Evans, Co-Founder & Head of Climate/AI, Fictiv.

"The question is no longer if you use AI but how and to what extent."

In order to help meet demand and mitigate delays caused by admin, AI is becoming more widely adopted, with 97% of respondents saying it is already embedded across core manufacturing and supply chain workflows. Many leaders say they anticipate AI-driven productivity gains of 50% or more, with some predicting even higher improvements as workflows are redesigned around automation. 

Sourcing strategies

As reliable supplier sourcing becomes a higher priority to building resilience, the process becomes much more difficult and faces a longer timeline. Now, 81% of leaders believe that supplier sourcing and management is too time-consuming and costly – an increase from 73% in 2025. 

Sourcing is becoming more complex and more expensive to manage, so more businesses are looking for platforms which can simplify the process, reduce handoffs and move faster. 

"Sourcing is becoming more complex across the entire supply chain lifecycle, especially for custom and standard mechanical components," explains Dave Evans, President & CEO, MISUMI Americas.

"Having a single source for both significantly reduces that complexity."

Leaders are now prioritising quality management (59%), supply chain design support (54%) and DFM, costing & engineering services (53%), with the belief that they have the highest potential to optimise supply chain operations. 

Manufacturing leaders report seeing major opportunities for supply chain improvement, with a shift towards reliance on digital platforms. In 2024, belief in digital platforms was at 86%, but has risen year-on-year to 97%. Now, leaders recognise these tools as essential for reducing complexity and improving engineering productivity - particularly in today's complex market.

Much of the strain manufacturers are facing come from external volatility, with 71% respondents reporting that tensions are impacting long-term supply chain strategy – this is an increase from 51% in 2025. Moreover, 98% say they are experience material cost pressures due to raw materials volatility. As a result, many have had to make changes to their sourcing strategy to cope. 

Some of the steps taken include on-shoring and near-shoring, as manufacturers move towards building regional resilience. Companies in industries such as EV, MedTech and Climate Tech are prioritising North American production alongside global sourcing diversification. Over the past five years, there has been a consistent increase of companies committing to US manufacturing, with 2026 revealing the strongest shift towards on-shoring and regionalising production. 

A sustainable push

Supply chains are also undergoing a year–on-year shift towards prioritising sustainability. In 2026, 73% of respondents say that implementing sustainable practises is 'very important' to their company, with 96% of businesses saying sustainability is a part of sourcing decisions. Larger companies in particular are more likely to have sustainability governance in place. 

As a result, manufacturing supply chains are witnessing a shift towards more sustainable operations, particularly in Climate Tech and EV industries.