Cutting-edge Manufacturing Technologies Bring New Risks

There were a few resounding topics at FABTECH 2025 held in Chicago in September — an event that boasted the largest expo floor in FABTECH history — with more than 850,000 net square feet covering three halls at McCormick Place. One common theme was present throughout the expo: the advantages of implementing automation and connected equipment on the shop floor, resulting in meaningful process improvements.  

While these breakthrough, updated or new automation technologies assist fabricators in overcoming labor shortages, as well as enhance machine accuracy, they also bring new safety risks and challenges.  

Implementing automation through robots and cobots to conduct repetitive motions in welding, surface finishing, and picking and placing, for example, cuts down on injuries such as strains and sprains, repetitive motion injuries, and slips and falls when moving from one area to another. “When we’re able to redeploy our talent in ways that are more dynamic and not as repetitive, we all benefit from that,” said Erika Melander, manufacturing practice leader for Nationwide Insurance.  

Adopting new technologies presents additional risks. For instance, one consideration is a possible disruption to your shop’s operations when adding new automation to your processes. “If it isn’t a seamless integration into your operation, you could actually present greater downtime or another bottleneck where you weren’t intending that to exist as you work to better integrate that new automation into your facility,” Melander said. For example, the possibility of software errors. A smaller manufacturer doesn’t have the same margin of error ability that a larger manufacturer might have. “If one piece of your production line is interrupted, that could be catastrophic,” Melander said. Partners who understand your business can assist in adopting new technologies in a way that protects your shop’s operations, relationships, and brands and reputation going forward.  

Melander pointed out another consideration when it comes to automation: keeping the data captured from your machines and processes safe. “When we integrate automation, it inevitably comes with an integration of data and how we store that data is really important,” she said. For example, when using AI, you not only gather information, but your shop’s data is also out in the ether as well. “Your intellectual property becomes at risk when you’re using AI, depending on how you start to integrate that,” Melander pointed out. “And then just the pure cybersecurity risk. So just having access to your facility and your equipment and ransomware is unfortunately a big issue.” 

Think about it — manufacturing operations can be viewed as easy targets by hackers. You are busy running your day-to-day processes and are not focused on the level of protection that might be required to stop bad actors. “It could be something as simple as not changing passwords after an employee leaves and that employee has access to the facility and maybe they didn’t leave on good terms,” Melander said.  

Or it could be ransomware that overrides the tolerances or specifications on a piece of equipment, impacting the quality of your products. 

For fabricators, focus on what you do best — producing top of the line products for your customers — and team up with financial partners that are positioned to manage and mitigate risks by coming to the table with solutions so you can get up and running when the unexpected happens. “We can’t anticipate everything that will go wrong,” Melander said. “But we do know uncertainty exists and things will go wrong.”