Building a Bold New Roadmap Forward for the U.S. Manufacturing Industry

Summary

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Supply Chain Now: "Building a Bold New Roadmap Forward for the U.S. Manufacturing Industry"

Date: December 10, 2025
Recorded at: Innovation Summit North America 2025, Las Vegas, powered by Schneider Electric
Host: Scott Luton
Guests:

• Jay Timmons (President & CEO, National Association of Manufacturers, NAM)
• Kathy Wangle (EVP, Chief Technical Operations & Risk Officer, Johnson & Johnson, NAM Board Chair)

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Episode Overview

This episode is a deep dive into the evolving landscape of U.S. manufacturing, emphasizing the urgent need for a new comprehensive industry strategy. Scott Luton gathers insights from Jay Timmons and Kathy Wangle, who collectively represent manufacturing’s policy advocacy, on-the-ground leadership, and innovation. The conversation explores critical industry challenges—tariff policies, workforce development, permitting reform, technological innovation, and trade certainty—with a focus on actionable solutions to empower American manufacturing and sustain global leadership.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Need for a New Manufacturing Strategy

[04:02] Jay Timmons on Foundations of Success:

• A robust manufacturing base underpins all successful economies, driving growth and improved quality of life for Americans.
• U.S. manufacturing must stay globally competitive as other nations seek to overtake its economic leadership.
• Six key policy pillars:
  • Tax policy: Lowering business costs.
  • Regulatory policy: Boosting efficiency and reducing burdens.
  • Energy access: Ensuring affordable domestic energy as manufacturers use 20% of U.S. supply.
  • Workforce development: Building the future through targeted educational pathways.
  • Trade policy: Enabling global market access.
  • Supply chains: Ensuring critical inputs are available and affordable.

Quote:
"Every country that is successful, every economy that is successful, is really grounded in a strong and thriving manufacturing base." – Jay Timmons [04:02]

[06:09] Kathy Wangle Adds:

• Emphasizes the rapid technological and workforce transformation in manufacturing.
• Advocates for changing outdated perceptions of the sector and showcasing diverse career pathways.
• Stresses the need to amplify policy solutions and partner with government to clear roadblocks for manufacturers.

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2. Permitting Reform for Energy & Resource Development

[07:36] Jay Timmons on the Bottleneck:

• Calls for streamlining the lengthy permitting process for energy and mining projects.
• Notes the U.S. lags behind other nations (10–15 years for mining permits vs. 1–3 years elsewhere).
• Highlights nuclear energy as key for future capacity, especially with AI increasing energy demand.
• Clarifies that reform is about removing duplicative hurdles and unnecessary legal delays—not reducing safety.

Quote:
"This is not about making something less safe... It's about getting rid of duplication, streamlining processes, and eliminating legal hurdles that are just impediments to progress." – Jay Timmons [10:01]

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3. Workforce Development: Pathways, Opportunity, and the Talent Gap

[11:07] Kathy Wangle:

• Technical skills form the backbone: electricians, engineers, equipment operators.
• Multiple routes into manufacturing (e.g., apprenticeships, Veterans programs)—not all require college degrees.
• Special spotlight on Manufacturing Institute programs like "FAME" and "Veterans Make America."

Quote:
"There are so many pathways... it's not about needing four-year degrees for everything... It's also about inspiring the workforce, having them see modern manufacturing." – Kathy Wangle [11:07]

[13:58] On the Talent Shortage:

• 400,000 open jobs in U.S. manufacturing now; projected to reach 2 million by 2030.
• Urgent need to source talent from underrepresented populations and create inclusive pipelines.

Quote:
"2 million jobs we can't fill unless we help accelerate these pipelines from different backgrounds, from different educations, and really create that environment that is the new manufacturing renaissance here." – Kathy Wangle [13:58]

[15:11] Jay Timmons Adds:

• Rewarding careers, both personally and financially ($120K starting salaries for some roles).
• Job satisfaction is high on factory floors nationwide.

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4. Trade Policy and the Impact of Tariffs

[16:16] Jay Timmons:

• The industry’s biggest need: certainty in trade to plan investments, hiring, and growth.
• While tax and regulatory reforms send positive signals, pervasive tariff unpredictability impedes progress and investment.
• U.S. manufacturers must import about 16% of critical components and materials—for new factories, tariffs can raise costs 40% or more, stalling projects.

Quote:
"This year, the tariff policy has created the great pause. This economy is ready to explode in a very positive way. But we have to have the certainty and understand where all of these tariff policies are going." – Jay Timmons [17:55]

• NAM’s proposed “manufacturing accelerator” would enable duty-free, expedited access for critical inputs so the U.S. can build capacity.

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5. Technological Innovation: AI, Sensors, and Medical Breakthroughs

[19:47] Jay Timmons:

• AI and automation are tools to boost productivity and efficiency worldwide.
• Medical innovations—like the mRNA vaccine—highlight manufacturing’s life-or-death importance.

Personal Note:
"My grandmother had polio...my father died of COVID before the vaccine came out...we were able to bring [the vaccine] to life and save so many lives." – Jay Timmons [20:26]

[22:02] Kathy Wangle on the New Era:

• Health care and med device sectors are being revolutionized by the intersection of science, miniaturization, and AI.
• Sensors now let companies monitor, track, and proactively manage products, like cold-chain pharmaceuticals, across the global supply chain.
• Predictive maintenance and agentic AI enable automatic interventions to prevent losses or spoilage.

Quote:
"The acceleration and ubiquity of lower cost sensors... allow us to connect things and manufacture and trace in a different way. So you put that there, you put AI, and it's a different, amazing world." – Kathy Wangle [23:24]

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6. The Policy Imperative

[24:15] Jay Timmons:

• Policy, not politics, is the lever for continued innovation and investment.
• Warns against measures (like pharmaceutical price controls) that could reduce the incentive or ability for companies to innovate.

Quote:
"Those [innovations] can only be possible through investments. And when policy exists to make it more difficult for our companies to invest... let's focus on the real problem." – Jay Timmons [24:15]

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Notable Moments & Quotes

• Veteran Employment Programs:
  "[Veterans] make about 3 billion Acuvue brand contact lenses every year in that plant in Jacksonville." – Kathy Wangle [13:13]
• Workforce Reality Check:
  "Jim Farley, CEO of Ford, just said how frustrated he is that he can’t get folks on the line for $120,000 a year starting." – Jay Timmons [15:11]
• Human Impact of Manufacturing:
  "No product, no program." – Scott Luton quoting humanitarian leaders [21:47]

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• [04:02] – Why a New Manufacturing Strategy Matters
• [06:09] – Perception & Future of Manufacturing Careers
• [07:36] – Permitting Reform: Energy & Critical Minerals
• [11:07] – Workforce Development: Skills & Pathways
• [13:58] – U.S. Manufacturing Talent Pipeline Crunch
• [16:16] – Trade Policy, Tariffs, and Investment Certainty
• [19:47] – Transformative Innovation: AI, Medicine, and Sensors
• [23:24] – Connecting Policy to Innovation

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Tone & Takeaways

The conversation is urgent yet optimistic, blending clear-eyed assessments of American manufacturing’s hurdles with tangible examples and a call to action. Both guests emphasize inclusion, collaboration, and technological advancement as the foundation for a new competitive era. The overall tone is pragmatic, solutions-focused, and forward-looking, grounded in gratitude for the past and genuine excitement for the future.

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Summary prepared for the Supply Chain Now audience.

Transcript

[A]

The tariff policy has created the great pause. This economy is ready to explode in a very positive way. But we have to have the certainty and understand where all of these tariff policies are going, who's going to be charged what to bring things into this country that we need to build new manufacturing capacity.

[B]

Welcome to Supply Chain, now the number one voice of supply chain. Join us as we share critical news, key insights, and real supply chain leadership from across the globe. One conversation at a time, everybody.

[C]

Scott Luton at Supply Chain now here in Las Vegas, where I'm at the Innovation Summit North America 2025, all powered by our friends at Schneider Electric. I'm here joined by my two newest best friends, Jay Timmons, President CEO with the national association of Manufacturers. Jay, how you doing?

[A]

I'm doing great. This is an incredible conference and we really learned some stuff already.

[C]

I'm with you. I was an opening keynote and was blown away. And Kathy, Kathy Wangle, Executive Vice President, Chief Technical Operations and Risk Officer with Johnson Johnson. Kathy, how you doing?

[D]

I'm doing great, Scott. It's wonderful to be here with you.

[C]

Wonderful. I've been tracking, you know, you're a Supply Chain hall of famer, so I've been tracking you for quite some time. I can't wait to learn from you here today.

[D]

Well, same here. Right back at you. I'm thrilled to be here.

[C]

All right, so Kathy and Jay, we got a lot to get into your day. Let's level set on a couple of things first. Right. So Jay, if you could. I've been tracking in AM for quite some time. I admire the work you all do for one of my favorite sectors in the world. Can you tell us a little bit more about the Nam and your role there?

[A]

Yeah, happy to do that. And one title that Kathy also holds is Chair of the Board of directors of the NAM. And so we have 14,000 member companies, just like Johnson and Johnson, literally representing every single sector in every state, from multinationals to the smallest mom and pop operations all across the country. And our job is to advocate on behalf of manufacturers when it comes to policy that will make us more competitive both in the United States and internationally, to Congress, the White House, the agencies.

[C]

You know, the manufacturing industry is so critical to the global economy, to our national economy, to mom and pops, to every company out there.

[A]

And by the way, 90% of our members are those small and medium manufacturers. So it's really all about, it's all about Main Street America.

[C]

Love it, Jay. Okay, so Kathy, if you could touch on two things. Your role at Johnson And Johnson, one of the most admired companies in the world. And secondly, as Jay pointed out, your leadership at nan.

[D]

Well, thank you again to have us here. And so at Johnson Johnson. I'm a career person at Johnson Johnson, been there nearly 38 years. I'm currently the chief technical operations and risk officer for the corporation, part of the executive committee, but came up through engineering operations, quality, supply chain, it lots of technical spaces essentially which is why I'm now in that technical operations. But also the risk side of things and how we make sure we're more resilient as a company. We have such an important industry. We're bringing transformational medical innovation to patients around the world and making sure that that great product gets there high quality every day. You know, people can't wait when it's time for their surgery or medicine. So that's what I'm here to do. And I've been proud to be a member of the board of the NEM for almost a decade and now to serve as chair in a really exciting time where we see our industry transforming and what we can do to help represent, as Jase said, the ecosystem of everything from the tiniest to the biggest manufacturers. It's really a privile to get to represent them.

[C]

Kathy, I'm with you. I don't know where you find the time all that you do at Johnson Johnson to donate some of your thought leadership and hands on leadership to nam. We're very grateful for that. Okay, so Jay, I want to ask you both about this new comprehensive manufacturing strategy that you have created and have been advocating for. And we'll start with the why.

[A]

Right?

[C]

So why does the manufacturing industry need a new strategy moving forward?

[A]

So every country that is successful, every economy that is successful, is really grounded in a strong and thriving manufacturing base. And we've seen that throughout our history here in the United States that manufacturing has really enabled us to grow our economy, create a better quality of life for all Americans. So with that as the foundation, you got to figure out, okay, well what makes us successful or what enables us to, to be competitive around the world. Because look, there are other countries that, that would just love to take away our mantle of economic leadership. I mean, we don't have to sit here and talk about which ones they are, but it's kind of pretty obvious, right? So the key is making sure that we have those right policies in place. And when you talk about our, our comprehensive agenda, think about issues like tax policy, you know, what reduces the cost of doing business here in the United States. United States Regulatory policy not only reducing costs, but also making sure that we're able to be efficient and think about energy supply. Are we accessing energy here at home to reduce that cost? Because manufacturers use 20% of the nation's energy supply, that number is going to grow, by the way, with the advent of AI workforce policy. My colleague Carolyn Lee at the Manufacturing Institute, Kathy also, by the way, talking about the time she spends. She's also on the board of directors of the Institute. They focus on growing the manufacturing workforce of the future and then of course, trade policy. Are we going to sell our products around the country or around the world or, or are we just going to focus here on our domestic market? That's never been particularly successful. The NAM was founded in 1895 on the thought of growing our our reach in our markets and selling our products to around the world.

[C]

Jay, I wish I had three hours to dive into that last response you shared. But really quick before I get Kathy's follow up thoughts. I love the work Carolyn is doing, especially securing the workforce pipeline which is critical for any industry, especially the manufacturing industry. All right, so Kathy, Jay just walked us through a variety really the why we need a new strategy and he mentioned a couple different elements which we're going to dive deeper into here in a second. Your follow up thoughts. Why do we need a new roadmap moving forward?

[D]

Well, number one, our industry is fundamentally changing with the advent of more technological innovation, the need and the desire to bring continue to bring more people into the future of manufacturing, the workforce of the future. We think there are still many perceptions from the old days of what manufacturing is like and we're here to really demonstrate and show how advanced manufacturing is today, how it creates great career pathways for people from incredibly diverse backgrounds. And most importantly, because manufacturers are bringing incredible innovation as we see here at the summit that are really transforming industries. And to do that though, we need tax policy, we need regulatory policy, we need to have the energy we need and we need that workforce. And to do that, our job here at the NEM is to help amplify those needs and be able to work with the great team that Jay has, you know, in lockstep with government, with policymakers at state, at national levels to help make those pathways for manufacturers better and simpler.

[C]

Love that as you're describing, lots of the why it's like we need all of these ingredients to unleash a incredibly new chapter of American manufacturing. And that's kind of what you are doing, unlocking those ingredients. So Jay, I want to touch on dive a little bit deeper on some of the core elements of this new comprehensive roadmap and strategy. And I want to start on something you kind of alluded to earlier, permitting reform. Why is that so essential?

[A]

Well, Scott, permitting reform is something that's been it's been discussed ad nauseam, quite frankly, in Congress, in many administrations dating back, you know, several decades. Why is that important? It's important because we've got to be able to more quickly and expeditiously unlock America's energy leadership and dominance here in this country. The Trump administration has been focused on what the president, I think, rightfully calls our ability to be dominant in energy here in the United States. Until recently, we were always a net importer of energy supply. I'd say probably that started to change really dramatically about 10 years ago. We've seen an unleashing of our potential when it comes to accessing new technologies, enabling us to access great supply of natural gas here in this country. We're focusing on new innovations when it comes to renewables. The thing that I think we've really got to focus on most aggressively is our capacity to build out nuclear facilities, because nuclear is clearly going to be a way to provide that energy supply that we're going to need here at this conference. One of the things that Schneider is focusing on is, is the advent of artificial intelligence, AI, and the energy demands that will be required in order to power that system. So what we're manufacturing now or what we are producing in terms of energy in the United States, well, it's good for today. It's not good enough for tomorrow. Permitting reform will help us unlock some of that. It's also important not just for energy, but also for the very things that we make. So think of critical minerals here in the United States. Think of the fact that it takes 10 to 15 years just to permit a mine to allow us to mine copper, and copper is so critical for electricity demand. So there are a number of reasons that permitting reform is necessary, but what we are lacking is the political will to get it done. At this point, everybody is talking about it. As I said, the administration wants to lead on it. They need to lean in, and they need to lean in heavily right now. Jay, well said.

[C]

And a couple quick points before I get Kathy's take here. The permitting timeframes you mentioned, it's grown quite a bit here in the States. In other countries, it's as little as one to three years. Right. It's what we're up against. And then secondly, you mentioned nuclear power. I think it's exciting, this new chapter of new nuclear power that I think we're moving into. So we'll see what that unlocks.

[A]

Can I say one thing? You know, permitting reform, you know, this is not about making something less safe. Right. Nobody wants that. This is about getting rid of duplication. It's about streamlining processes. It's about eliminating kind of those legal hurdles that seem to be just thrown out to be impediments to progress or frankly, to fatten the wallets of certain trial attorneys. Right. So if we can kind of eliminate those types of barriers and really focus on what we need to focus on, which is how do we make a facility or how do we make sure a mine is safe and secure? That's what permitting should be all about. It shouldn't be. It shouldn't be a political, you know, volleyball match.

[C]

Right, right.

[A]

And. And that's what it's really turned into. In a lot of cases.

[C]

Safety's got to be table stakes. Sure. Let's focus on what we really need. The. The issues at hand is what I'm hearing from you, Jay. All right, so, Kathy, let's talk a little bit more about workforce development. And I think you're in a unique position to really talk about what the manufacturing industry needs, specifically when it comes to the workforce. What would you call out to our audience? Tuned in.

[D]

So everything technical is at the basis of a great manufacturing workforce. And whether that is electricians, mechanics, mechanics, electromechanical experts, then engineers and scientists, but also people who just love working with equipment and love bringing things to life. And so the message is really those talents come from so many places and there are so many pathways to get to careers in manufacturing. So what we do at the Manufacturing Institute is try to focus on certain pathways and help accelerate them. Veterans make America. And how we really help accelerate the transition from active military into industry. There are so many translatable skills from the military into manufacturing. JJ is proud to have been hiring military veterans since the Spanish American War, but so many companies do that. So that's a focus area. The FAME program, an apprenticeship program, started with Toyota, but really helping give people pathways. This is not about needing four year degrees for everything. Yes, in some jobs, but there are so many pathways. And a lot of it's also about inspiring the workforce, having them see modern manufacturing and understand that you can do everything from making the smallest part that can make a rocket ship, you know, take off, to making transformational medicine that get us as close as we can to cures for cancer.

[C]

Kathy. Oh, so much touch on and space supply chain. We're going to need tons of talent. That leverage opportunity is there. There's manufacturing low Earth orbit, which I find absolutely intriguing.

[A]

I got to see the veterans program that JJ has down in Jacksonville. Kathy took me down there and it's really fascinating to see so many folks who don't understand what opportunities are available in manufacturing and frankly, how modern manufacturing gives you a new challenge every single day. It's constantly evolving. And when I talked to those veterans, they were saying when we were in the military, we weren't sure what we were going to do when we came out. And JJ was right there to make sure that they understood what the pathway was for them. And it's wildly successful.

[D]

And now they make about 3 billion Acuvue brand contact lenses every year in that plant in Jacksonville.

[A]

For what? I'm very thankful for that because I'm wearing them right now.

[D]

And they would have never thought, oh, I can make contact. No, but the technology, the equipment, the advances, it's. Yeah, it's terrific.

[C]

So I want to follow up one more thing on the workforce front.

[D]

Yeah.

[C]

One thing you've mentioned a couple of times, Kathy, and I think it's a message that we've got to shout from the mountaintops. And there's two elements. Number one, my fellow veterans, there's tremendous opportunities across global supply chain manufacturing, you name it. We need your skill sets and experience, expertise. And number two, Kathy, is folks from all walks of life, you don't have to have a four year degree, you don't have to be an engineer. We love those folks too. But there's something really for everybody in the wide world of manufacturing, Would you agree?

[D]

I agree 100%. And to your point, not only in the active manufacturing, in procurement, in logistics, right. In planning, all those elements that go into running the supply chains and manufacturing. I'll leave you some numbers from my NAM experience. But today there are 400,000 open manufacturing jobs in the United States and that number is projected to grow to 2 million by 2030 with the growth of manufacturing. But 2 million jobs we can't fill unless we help accelerate these pipelines from different backgrounds, from different educations, and really create that environment that is the new manufacturing renaissance here.

[A]

There's a footnote on that number. That 2 million number, that number was calculated before President Trump came into office and said, look, I'm going to focus on, on growing manufacturing capacity even more in the United states. So that 2 million number could, could grow exponentially.

[C]

It's Remarkable is remarkable. And that should be a call to action. We've got to work together to not only solve the energy technology demand, which is only going to continue to grow, we're going to touch on some of the innovations there, but also protect and grow the talent pipeline as well.

[A]

And Scott, I don't think most people understand how rewarding these jobs are. And I don't mean just in terms of you love going to work every day, because I hear that story every time I'm on a shop floor. It really is rewarding financially as well. Jim Farley, the CEO of Ford, just said how frustrated he is that he can't get folks on the line for $120,000 a year starting, starting. So. So these jobs can really pay enormously financially, but also in terms of really enjoying what you do every day.

[C]

Jay, well said. I think that same interview Mr. Farley mentioned that Ford is working really hard to fill thousands of openings when it comes to maintainers. And nothing moves forward without our incredibly talented maintainers. Okay, let's talk about one more thing related to this comprehensive new strategy. Everyone's maybe favorite or least favorite topic, trade policy. Right. This has been the year of tariffs in many ways. Hopefully we're going to be gathering some more certainty as we move forward. But what would you, Jay, and the NAM community like to see moving forward when it comes to trade policy?

[A]

Well, you just said it. Certainty. So if you are a manufacturer and again, you're trying to figure out how to reduce costs so that you can invest more in the United States, so that you can hire more people, so that you can raise wages and benefits, you have to have certainty across the board. I give a tremendous amount of credit to the President and to members of Congress for passing tax reform. Not just passing tax reform, but making sure that the reforms that were passed in 2017 were made permanent, that sent a message to the entire world that America is indeed open for business. The president has also wrapped his arms around the regulatory system and tried to make sure that we're modernizing and ensuring that those regulations are consistent. Trade policy is an area where we've got to have that certainty as well. And look, the president believes in tariffs. That's just flat out the case. So how do we respond to that? Well, we respond by saying, okay, where are we going to invest our next dollar? The President, and I think rightly so, once those dollars invested here in the United States. Here's a statistic that is a little mind blowing, actually. Our economist Victoria Bloom calculated that if we had Every machine running in the United States and we had everybody on the line producing everything possible. If we were going to set up a new manufacturing facility here in the United States, we could only manufacture about 84% of the critical inputs necessary to build that factory. So what does that mean? Well, today, not necessarily tomorrow, but today, we would have to import 16% of the critical materials that would go into that new facility. Think in terms of specialty machines that we don't make here in the United States right now. Some of those critical minerals I mentioned that we can't mine here yet in the United States if those are being tariffed and you have somebody and I this is a real life example. A small businesswoman wanted to invest $100 million in new plant equipment, but with tariffs it was going to be 140 million. She didn't have access to that capital, so she had to put a pause on that investment. And my concern is that right now, this year, the tariff policy has created the great pause. This economy is ready to explode in a very positive way. But we have to have the certainty and understand where all of these tariff policies are going, who's going to be charged what to bring things into this country that we need to build new manufacturing capacity. It's kind of a vicious circle and one that we've addressed with our manufacturing accelerator program, which would allow us to bring in those critical inputs through some sort of a speed pass and duty free status to to enable us to build that capacity.

[C]

Jay Excellent. I wish I had more time. Here is to gaining more and more certainty in the months ahead because I'll tell you, if I've learned anything in my time in global supply chain and manufacturing, if we know what the problem is, Kathy, we can figure it out. Is that right?

[D]

That's for sure.

[C]

Okay, so let's talk about some more good news. Let's shift gears. I failed all the classes in economics in college, so I'm going to quickly move on to my favorite topic of good news and innovation. Right. Because it is truly a golden age of supply chain technology, of business technology. Right now we're here at a conference that's helping to unlock and having cross industry conversations to figure out how to power and fuel even more innovations in that regard. Jay, when it comes specifically to the manufacturing industry and you think of the bevy of innovations out there, what's one in particular that you're intrigued with here?

[A]

Well, let's separate products and tools. Clearly we're here to talk about at this conference. We're here to talk about new technologies like artificial intelligence, I would say that that is a tool that has tremendous potential to improve quality of life for people all over the world because it will help us in terms of being more productive, more efficient, and just doing things better when it comes to products. And this is not because the chair of the board is sitting here, but I have always been intrigued with advancements in medical science and pharmaceuticals. My grandmother had polio, so, you know, I watched her struggle her entire life, and yet I never had to deal with that because the polio vaccine was there for me. My father died of COVID before the vaccine came out. And I was able to see millions and millions and millions of people's lives saved because of a medical advancement that through that MRNA technology that didn't exist or wasn't utilized a decade ago, but we were able to bring that to life and save so many lives and ensure that the world actually survived. And manufacturers, quite frankly, at the NAM were so proud to be a part of that effort to not only locate PPE all over the world when it was necessary during COVID but afterwards, help get folks to understand the importance of vaccine acceptance as that new technology came forward. So I get pretty excited when I think about those innovations, cures for cancer and cures for other diseases that we're seeing. It's really amazing.

[C]

Jay, I really appreciate your response and particularly the personal connections to your response. And Kathy, it really reminds me of the noble mission that our global supply chain manufacturing professionals, what they deliver on every day, because as Jay points out, it can be a matter of life and death. Right. We've supported a variety of humanitarian organizations. And one great phrase I keep going back to that one of those leaders shared with me. No product, no program.

[A]

Right.

[C]

And that's the power of supply chain, at least in my book. And I'm sitting beside a supply chain hall of famer and Kathy Wangle. Kathy, when you think of the innovations you've seen in your journey and what you're seeing here in 2025 and beyond, what's most exciting to you?

[D]

Well, one, I'll build a little on what Jay said in my industry, and then I'll go a little bit broader. So first, the acceleration of science and the acceleration of technology, the intersection of those two things in the health care world is allowing us to do things we could not even imagine 10 years ago. With cell therapy, gene therapy. With cell therapy, we're getting it as close to a cure as you can for certain types of cancers, multiple myeloma, other areas, our ability in what we used to call our med device business is now a med tech business because there are chips and intelligence and every kind of device. They are allowing us to really get to outcomes faster which overall then helps reduce the cost of care. To do that though the way we've got to bring those technologies into manufacturing because we have to be able to manufacture all of these great medical innovations. So the ability, I think of course AI, right. I know everyone's talking about that and action at that. So I'll pick another one which is the acceleration and ubiquity of lower cost sensors and the ability of us. If I think back to what we were doing decades ago in terms of having machines maybe count things, maybe the first vision systems, right? Manufacturers have been using AI for three decades, right? Maybe not gen AI, but AI. But now what you can do with a very low cost sensor to really help optimize every part of your supply chain to track products, to take medicines that need cold storage. And when it leaves our control, we can actually track and see where it is. If it's stuck at a transportation hub that may be going down for some reason, we can actually have an agentic AI, actually calculate how long before the cold storage there goes out and automatically trigger something to go grab that product, get it back into our warehouse, re refrigerate it and get it out. But those are all because of sensor technology that allows us to connect things and manufacture and trace in a different way. So you put that there, you put AI and it's a different amazing world.

[C]

It is, it's remarkable, it's extraordinary.

[A]

Well, Scott. Yes please. One, I'm going to add one footnote there because I want to bring it back to policy because at the NA, we're about policy, not politics, process or personality. And unfortunately, if you listen to what Kathy just talked about, all the amazing advances in medical science, those can only be possible through investments. And when policy exists to make it more difficult for our companies to invest, and I'm going to say for instance, price controls on pharmaceuticals, okay, our system is not perfect, we know that, but boy, it's better than any place in the country. And instead of focusing on politically trying to make business the bad guys or make manufacturers the bad guys, let's focus on the real problem. So in this case, pharmacy benefit manufacturers, right? They're sucking money out of the system that could be used to help the patient and also to ensure that we can continue with these investments. That's why policy is so important. And that's what we do every day at the naming.

[C]

Well, I think the great thing about manufacturing supply chain is we can get past politics and we can have the discussions where we might might disagree on some things, but we align and move forward and that's good for everybody. So I really appreciate yalls time here today. Jay Timmons with the national association of Manufacturers. Thanks so much, Jay. Folks, you can learn [e-mail] and hall of Famer Kathy Wangle with Johnson Johnson. Thanks so much for being here today as well. And folks, we'll leave it there. Stay tuned as we continue our coverage here at the Innovation Summit North America 2025, powered by our friends at Schneider Electric.

[B]

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