Patrick O'Brien, VP/General Manager, ITW EAE

Covid-19 has led Aegis Software to accelerate and enhance existing abilities to provide remote working and customer support, enabling expected growth. Being a software company, on-line tools have proven effective, and customers have responded positively. Where on-site action is required, we are encouraged that many customers have invested skills and time to become increasingly self-sufficient.

In 2021, we expect to see this trend continue, as associated reduced costs and lead-times are recognized. Customers appreciate the immediacy of response as they face rapidly changing customer and market requirements. We see the business environment for Smart, IIoT-based MES Factory Software increasing significantly in response to the need for customers to expand their businesses rapidly, as effects of the pandemic subside and they seek to differentiate themselves from their peers, in a potentially explosive market recovery.

As companies take a fresh perspective of business risk, localization, re-shoring and on-shoring projects will accelerate in order to avoid unmanageable dependencies. The need for responsive, flexible and efficient data-driven manufacturing will result in investment and growth, following the newly digital "Best Practices" being adopted.