American manufacturing is sitting at a crossroads. More companies aim to bring production back to the U.S. while existing operations race to expand capacity to meet new demands. Despite significant momentum, we’re still in the early stages of what promises to be a decade-long reshoring initiative. But even at this initial phase, the labor pool already shows significant strain. Recent national surveys tell the story: over half of manufacturers are prioritizing reshoring in 2025, while 56% simply cannot find the workers they need to meet existing production targets.

The reality on production floors doesn’t match the strategic plans in boardrooms across the country. And this gap will only widen as reshoring accelerates in the coming years.

When labor becomes the bottleneck

The math doesn’t add up for manual production. Whether reshoring or expanding capacity, manufacturers discover one persistent reality: worker shortages derail their plans. The economic case for domestic manufacturing looks strong on paper: shorter supply chains, faster response times, tighter quality control, lower transportation costs.

The problem? Production lines don’t run without people. When manufacturers can’t staff lines at any wage, even the strongest business case falls apart. With analysts projecting a tripling of reshored manufacturing capacity by 2030, today’s labor challenges represent just the beginning of what’s to come.

This isn’t theoretical. A building products manufacturer lost a major contract last year because they couldn’t hire enough workers to meet seasonal demand. Their competitor with automated palletizing captured the business and hasn’t lost it since.

Automation isn’t just an option – it’s the path forward

Forward-thinking manufacturers saw this coming years ago. When building or expanding facilities, they automated strategically from day one. The transition looks different from the shop floor than from the engineering office, but the results speak for themselves.

The systems we’ve built prove this daily:

• Achieving 99.5% efficiency in environments where manual operations struggled to hit 70%
• Eliminating 2-5 positions per line
• Maintaining consistent throughput regardless of labor availability
• Scaling production based on demand, not workforce limitations

Breaking the direct connection between production volume and headcount isn’t innovative thinking. It’s survival in today’s production landscape.

Start where your operation feels the most pain

Plant managers consistently report that end-of-line processes feel the labor pinch first. Palletizing and packaging automation delivers immediate relief where challenges hit hardest and tackle labor shortages where manpower is most scarce.

Five decades of manufacturing automation shows end-of-line is the logical starting point. Starting with upstream improvements creates downstream bottlenecks when end processes remain unchanged. Manual palletizing can’t match the speed of upstream automation, and older systems fail when pushed beyond rated capacities, causing maintenance costs and downtime. Starting automation post-primary packaging creates capacity for sequential improvements without creating operational constraints.

Each end-of-line system typically eliminates 2-5 positions per shift while increasing throughput. Well-designed implementations achieve system payback within 12-18 months with minimal production disruption during installation.

What makes these projects successful isn’t just the technology, it’s understanding the entire production flow. When engineers consider how automation impacts fabrication, assembly and maintenance differently, the solutions prove far more effective and sustainable.

When unexpected demand hits

The real test comes during demand spikes. One manufacturer we work with recently received an unexpected order doubling their volume for the upcoming quarter. Their manual operations would have required hiring and training temporary workers in a tight labor market – a virtual impossibility.

Instead, their automated palletizing system simply accelerated to meet demand. No emergency hiring. No quality variations. No missed deadlines.

This isn’t unique. Across hundreds of installations, manufacturers consistently see:

• 60-80% labor cost reductions
• 15-30% capacity increases without expanding footprint
• 99%+ quality consistency regardless of production speed
• 85% fewer material handling injuries
• Higher retention rates for the remaining technical positions

Beyond cost savings: operational certainty

What matters most to manufacturers isn’t just efficiency, it’s certainty. The tangible relief is evident when a plant manager can confidently tell their sales team: “Yes, we can take that order.”

Customers report outcomes that transform their business:

• Meeting production commitments 99.2% of the time (industry average: 82%)
• Responding to growth opportunities in weeks, not months
• Reducing overtime costs by up to 65% while increasing output
• Maintaining consistent quality despite workforce changes
• Eliminating the constant stress of staffing production lines

This repeats across building products, agriculture, ice manufacturing and beyond. The pattern is clear: manufacturers who automate end-of-line processes first gain the operational confidence to pursue opportunities that labor-constrained competitors simply cannot address.

As reshoring initiatives continue to gain momentum over the next decade, this automation advantage will become increasingly decisive. The early adopters implementing automation solutions today are positioning themselves not just for current labor challenges, but for the intensified competition that will emerge as more production returns to domestic facilities.

Whether reshoring operations or expanding them, successful manufacturers aren’t trying to recreate production models from decades past. They’re building operations designed for today’s reality where technology bridges the gap between ambitions and labor availability in what’s still just the opening phase of American manufacturing’s return.