Lights Out Manufacturing

Supply Chain Café by PICS Belgium supported by ABCAL 24.04.2025
Speaker: Lana De Keyzer – PwC

Lights Out Factory

A Lights Out Factory represents a fully autonomous production environment where manufacturing, logistics, and support processes operate with minimal human intervention. These factories are enabled by a strong IT/OT foundation, remote control capabilities, and intelligent automation. 

Shift

The shift toward such factories is driven by both external pressures (like regulatory demands, geopolitical risks, and evolving customer expectations) and internal challenges (such as labor shortages and cost pressures). Lights Out Factories offer a compelling response by increasing attractiveness of local operations in a cost-effective way, while catering to external risks and requirements (e.g. product transparency).

Transition

Transitioning to such a setup requires a strategic, organizational, and technological alignment. This includes defining a clear digital vision, adapting operating models and workforce capabilities, and integrating advanced automation technologies. Both brownfield and greenfield implementations are possible, each with tailored approaches—from retrofitting existing infrastructure to designing new, automation-ready facilities.

Journey

The journey toward full autonomy is incremental. It begins with digitizing processes and evolves through intelligent systems to fully autonomous operations. Early adopters across industries and geographies demonstrate the potential, though widespread implementation remains limited. Ultimately, success depends on a phased, value-driven approach that balances ambition with practical execution—starting small, scaling smartly, and ensuring cross-functional collaboration throughout.