The manufacturing landscape is shifting beneath our feet. As we look toward the next decade, the difference between thriving and merely surviving will come down to how well companies prepare today.
Recently, our CEO, Stephanie Lowry, sat down with Dean Phillips on the Destiny of Manufacturing podcast (powered by the Precision Metalforming Association) to discuss the pivotal changes facing our industry. From the integration of Artificial Intelligence to the revolution in press technology, the message was clear: 2030 is the milestone year, and the window to prepare is now.
Here are the key takeaways from their conversation on how Dayton Rogers is embracing the future of manufacturing.
When people hear “Artificial Intelligence,” they often think of ChatGPT. However, in the metal forming industry, AI is about much more than generating text—it’s about Machine Learning (ML) applied to heavy machinery.
At Dayton Rogers, we are moving past the hype to focus on predictive maintenance and process stability.
Stephanie highlighted a specific application we are exploring: training machine learning models to detect anomalies that human operators might miss until it’s too late.
By catching these issues early, we prevent die crashes and unplanned downtime. Furthermore, AI helps us capture “tribal knowledge.” Instead of relying on a single operator remembering to shim the back left corner of a die, AI systems can record and standardize these setup parameters, ensuring consistency regardless of who is running the machine.
"If there is a specific high frequency in a bearing and it senses that, coupled with a rise in temperature... that determines a machine failure and alerts our maintenance team."
Historically, automation was a luxury reserved for massive OEMs with million-dollar budgets. Today, that narrative has flipped. The availability of Cobots (Collaborative Robots) has made automation accessible and affordable.
With capable robotic units now available at a fraction of the cost of traditional cells, the Return on Investment (ROI) can be realized in months, not years.
For Dayton Rogers, this isn’t about replacing jobs; it’s about increasing capacity and efficiency. Automation allows machines to run “lights out” or across multiple shifts, while our skilled workforce focuses on programming, maintenance, and complex problem-solving. As Stephanie noted, schools and technical colleges are already adapting, training the next generation of workers to be robot programmers rather than just machine operators.
While traditional mechanical presses are the workhorses of the industry (some running reliably since the 1960s), the future lies in Servo Press technology.
Why make the switch? It comes down to control.
Unlike a mechanical press, which runs at a fixed speed and stroke motion, a Servo press allows for a fully programmable Ram motion. This allows us to manipulate the slide velocity to suit the specific geometry of the part.
The Servo Advantage:
• Quality Control: We can slow the press down right at the bottom of the stroke—just as it “kisses” the part. This reduces cracking in deep draw parts and improves overall precision.
• Energy Efficiency: Servo presses consume energy more intelligently, aligning with modern sustainability initiatives and reducing overhead costs.
• Tool Life: better control means less shock to the tooling, reducing repair costs and scrap rates.
As Stephanie predicted during the podcast, we expect to see a mass migration toward Servo technology over the next five years as manufacturers realize these efficiency gains.
No manufacturer is an island. A recurring theme in the interview was the importance of the Precision Metalforming Association (PMA).
Beyond the technical networking and sharing of best practices (like sales structures or operational efficiencies), the PMA serves a critical role in advocacy. With constant changes in Washington regarding tariffs and regulations, having a unified voice lobbying on behalf of manufacturers is invaluable.
Manufacturing is always evolving. Whether it is integrating AI to listen to bearing frequencies or utilizing Servo presses to perfect a deep draw, Dayton Rogers is committed to staying ahead of the curve.
As Stephanie Lowry put it, “Manufacturing is always going to be around… but it’s evolving always. It’s exciting to be a part of something like that.”
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