How 360° remote collaboration is transforming the manufacturing space

Site meetings have always been an integral part of the manufacturing process across industries. At the same time, the logistics of attendance at these meetings at often far-flung locations has always been challenging and costly. Even before COVID-19 made many site visits difficult or impossible; these visits were constrained by the high cost of travel, logistical challenges, safety and security concerns, and the disruptive nature of the visits themselves. Manufacturing site visits—whether for marketing and sales, inspections and audits, or training and process deployment—have always entailed considerable financial investment. For example, the cost of an average three-day business trip is between $1,200-$2,525 per person. Since even mid-sized companies often have multiple locations spanning the world and need to bring various people on site several times a year, their annual travel cost is typically well over $1M. To make an already challenging situation almost impossible, the COVID-19 pandemic has caused travel and supply chain disruptions, creating urgent new problems while simultaneously making on-site visits more difficult. These ongoing difficulties have compelled manufacturing leaders to leverage a new technology as an effective substitute for site meetings. Why 360° collaboration: The right tools for the right job Enter the latest advancement in remote collaboration: 360° manufacturing site meetings. Instead of traveling to a physical location, manufacturers, inspectors, and other stakeholders can connect with each other on-site without the need to travel.