The Real Reason Digital Transformation Fails in Manufacturing

In this conversation, Glenn Gardner joins us to unpack why so many digital transformation initiatives stall between executive dashboards and the factory floor. He explores the manufacturing strategy spectrum, from Lean pull systems to MRP-driven push environments, and explains why most plants operate somewhere in the messy middle. The discussion moves beyond theory into the practical trade-offs of just-in-time production, real-world constraints, and the operational friction that derails well-intentioned projects. We also dig into the true integration challenge inside modern factories. While many operational systems are designed for simple scalar data, maintenance and quality teams work with complex data structures such as vibration spectra, torque-angle curves, and force-displacement signatures. Glenn introduces Unified Namespace thinking, the idea of red versus blue data, and makes the case for designing systems bottom-up to serve operators and technicians first. The result is a grounded, practical view of how to make digital transformation actually work in manufacturing.