Manufacturing 20/20 Overview
CME’s Manufacturing 20/20 initiative has resulted in the most extensive consultations
ever undertaken exclusively by the private sector in the history of Canadian industry.
Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters launched Manufacturing 20/20 in January 2004. The objectives of
the initiative were to:
- Develop a long-term vision for manufacturing in Canada based on discussions with CEOs and
senior executives from manufacturing companies across the country;
- Consult with a wide range of Canadian manufacturers in order to better understand their
concerns with respect to the mounting competitive challenges they are facing in rapidly
changing global markets;
- Increase awareness on the part of all Canadians about the importance of manufacturing in
Canada and the changes that are redefi ning the industry in this country and around the
world; and,
- Bring manufacturers together with stakeholders from Canada’s educational institutions and
research centres, labour groups, business and financial services, community organizations
and economic development agencies, as well as with officials from all levels of government,
to coordinate solutions in response to the issues identified by manufacturers as critical
to their future competitive success.
Three documents were prepared as background material for discussion. They are posted on CME’s
Manufacturing 20/20 website at www.cme-mec.ca/mfg2020/index.asp. The discussion papers covered:
- The Economic Importance of Manufacturing in Canada;
- The Challenges facing Canadian Manufacturers; and,
- Global Trends in Manufacturing.
The first phase of Manufacturing 20/20 consisted of 64 discussion sessions that were organized
with manufacturers across Canada. Over 900 senior executives from small, mid-sized, and large
manufacturing companies, representing all sectors in the industry, participated in these meetings.
The discussions focused on four crucial issues:
- What are the challenges and opportunities that will reshape manufacturing over the next ten
to fifteen years?
- What changes are occurring as a result of those challenges and opportunities?