Production downtime in manufacturing operations can have significant consequences, from costing the company millions of dollars to threatening customer relationships due to delayed orders. Unfortunately, production downtime is unavoidable, but manufacturers can take steps to minimize the negative effects of these events and ensure rapid recovery of operations.
Several issues cause or exacerbate production downtime, including cybersecurity incidents, machine maintenance, and operational failures, to name a few. Mitigating this downtime is essential, but it’s equally important to have a recovery plan in place to quickly bounce back from any planned or unexpected downtime.
If manufacturers lack a rapid response to downtime, especially unplanned, they risk compounding the negative consequences of these events. Manufactures must prepare their operations and workforce for downtime to effectively cut recovery times and minimize production disruptions.
New Research Shows Top OEMs Cut Downtime Recovery by 40%
Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) are working on their rapid recovery times by adopting tactics that enable them to perform consistently despite unpredictable conditions. This trend was revealed in Rockwell Automation’s OEM Advantage Playbook global research study.
Rockwell Automation compiled this research from 500 OEMs across 17 countries. The study highlights business leaders who focus on consistent production performance to combat common industry challenges, including supply chain disruptions, rising costs, and employee turnover.
One significant statistic from the study shows that the average production outage lasts 40 hours and costs manufacturers $3.6 million. But those OEMs investing in rapid recovery have reduced their production downtime to 24 hours or less, equivalent to at least a 40% reduction.
This is made possible by manufacturers investing in advanced machine designs with a goal of reducing downtime. These machines detect issues early, are embedded with expertise so as not to depend on human workers, and are integrated with cybersecurity measures.
Such investments have led these OEMs to become more profitable, build better customer relationships, reduce time to market, and enable consistent performance among both machines and workforce. When manufacturers prepare for unexpected production downtime and other volatility, they can make better decisions to minimize the impacts of these events.
For any manufacturing leaders looking to cut production downtime and improve rapid recovery, the Rockwell Automation playbook recommends these five strategies to make operations more resilient:
- Plan for workforce instability.
- Design processes to detect, diagnose and resolve issues quickly.
- Integrate compliance and cybersecurity into products and operations.
- Adopt advanced technologies.
- Measure performance throughout operations.
Implementing these strategies into everyday workflows will make OEMs more resilient and enable a major reduction in production downtime.
The Lowdown on Downtime: New Report Says It’s Not Cyber-Related
Though the OEM Advantage Playbook does highlight having cybersecurity measures in place to prepare for downtime, cyberattacks aren’t the leading cause of unexpected downtime or delayed recovery. This finding comes from a study entitled “The State of Backup & Recovery in Manufacturing 2026”, which was conducted by companies Marcium Software and NewtonX.
The study found cyberattacks only make up 5% of production outages. And though these outages do cost manufacturers, the real culprit causing the most production downtime is called a “recovery gap”. According to the study, this deals with a company’s “ability to recover from internal operational failures,” regardless of the source of the failure.
When it takes a manufacturer a long time to recover from unexpected production downtime, it costs the company significantly. That’s why investing in rapid recovery is so important. Manufacturers should have preventative cybersecurity measures in place, but focusing too much on prevention over effective recovery capabilities can be detrimental. So, should manufacturers still invest in cybersecurity as part of their rapid recovery plans? Yes, but make sure the budget aligns with the potential impact on operations and consider investing more in tactics aimed at speeding up recovery times.
Rethinking Disaster Recovery for Modern Manufacturers
Unplanned production downtime is more than just a nuisance for manufacturers — it has a negative monetary value attached, often in six or seven figures. Aside from this lost revenue, unexpected outages impact overall equipment effectiveness (OEE) and delay production, causing manufacturers to miss targets and push orders out.
To combat this downtime loss, manufacturers need to focus on how they can either continue production during disruptions or quickly recover from an outage. This requires a disaster recovery checklist or plan, but in manufacturing this type of document may be different compared to other companies. During outages, many companies are focused on recovering systems, but manufacturers need to be focused on recovering production, which includes everything from lost manufacturing time to delayed production schedules.
Manufacturers’ rapid recovery plans must prioritize which production lines need to be restored first, determine what decisions leaders can quickly make under pressure, and identify points of failure. This becomes more complicated in a modern manufacturing facility that has several interconnected systems and technologies within operations. There must be a rapid recovery strategy for restoring technologies and control systems in the right order based on business objectives, otherwise manufacturers risk extending the downtime.
Mapping this internal system recovery is necessary for minimizing production downtime, but manufacturers must also review external dependencies. Are suppliers or vendors providing support for necessary systems within the manufacturing facility? If so, what production processes and other services will be affected by a disruption in these products? Mapping supplier relationships is also necessary for rapid recovery and building resilient operations.
After analyzing operations and implementing rapid response plans, manufacturers should simulate real-life disruption scenarios based on the vulnerabilities found in their systems. These scenarios will be company- as well as industry-specific, and should consider an overlap of multiple downtime scenarios to continue identifying failure points or interdependencies within operations.
Every manufacturer will face unplanned production downtime. It’s imperative to have a strategy in place to maintain production operations or a plan for rapid recovery to minimize the effects of downtime as much as possible, maintain productivity, and preserve production schedules.
Planning for Production Downtime
Leading manufacturers maintain resilience in operations by preparing for production downtime, both planned and unexpected, and taking proactive steps to minimize disruptions during these outages. These companies don’t treat rapid recovery plans as just another compliance item to check off a list, but actually do the legwork to ensure the plan minimizes downtime.
This process includes a thorough knowledge of operations, how interconnected systems at a facility work together, and all possible internal and external failure points. Such information equips manufacturers with the means to invest appropriately in solutions that enable them to rapidly recover during any production downtime scenario.
If you’re a manufacturer who wants to learn more about preparing for and minimizing downtime, and search for rapid response solutions, you should attend the Manufacturing Technology Series of events. These events take place across four regional locations throughout 2027, and help attendees stay up-to-date with the latest industry trends and innovative products. Save the date for your opportunity to take part in advancing the future of manufacturing.