Rethinking operations to boost productivity

The manufacturing and construction sectors are converging as both move towards a more integrated and industrialised model of design and delivery. This shift reflects a broader transformation in the global economy, shaped by sustainability, urbanisation and technological advancement. These changes are not occurring in isolation. At PwC, we see them redefining how we live and work, shaping where value is moving and, in turn, our Domains of growth—strategic areas where value creation will concentrate over the coming decade.  Among the most consequential are Make (industrial production) and Build (construction and infrastructure) domains.

These domains sit at the heart of how economies function, shaping how infrastructure is delivered, how goods are produced and how opportunity is distributed. Their impact, however, is not defined by scale alone, but by how productively they operate. The efficiency with which inputs are converted into outputs, the reliability of delivery and the ability to minimise waste ultimately shape the value they create.

This productivity lens becomes particularly important in South Africa, where inequality, energy constraints, and infrastructure backlogs continue to place pressure on both sectors. These challenges not only limit output but expose inefficiencies across value chains, from delays in project execution to underperformance in industrial production. In this context, the evolution of Make and Build will shape more than GDP outcomes; it will determine whether growth translates into meaningful, broad-based participation.

The scale of what is at stake remains significant. Make and Build domains could generate close to $11 trillion in value by 2035. For South Africa, however, capturing this opportunity will depend on improving productivity, enabling higher throughput, reducing waste, accelerating delivery and improving quality, while ensuring that constrained resources deliver greater impact. 

Across the Make and Build domains, a set of structural and operational forces is steadily reshaping how organisations function. Rapid urbanisation and population growth are sustaining demand for housing, transport, energy and industrial infrastructure. At the same time, technologies such as automation, 3D printing and AI are transforming how products, components and buildings are produced, driving efficiency, consistency, and adaptability.

Yet technology alone is not the constraint. Its value is only realised when it is embedded into day-to-day operations and decision-making. In many South African contexts, this gap between investment and activation is particularly pronounced, as systems and skills have not evolved at the same pace as infrastructure. At the same time, workforce pressures are intensifying, as experienced artisans exit faster than they can be replaced.

The result is a growing mismatch between complexity and execution. As a result, productivity constraints are less about capacity and more about the effectiveness of execution.

Consider a mid-sized South African manufacturer operating in a competitive regional market. Demand is stable, with clear room for growth, yet profitability remains under pressure. On the surface, the business appears fully utilised. Production schedules are tight, teams are stretched and capital projects are underway. Beneath that activity, however, productivity has quietly plateaued.

A closer look reveals familiar patterns. Planning is fragmented across functions, limiting coordination. Operational, maintenance, and financial data are poorly integrated, reducing visibility. Maintenance remains largely reactive, with equipment failures disrupting production and driving rework. Overtime becomes the default response to recover output, increasing costs without improving performance. At the same time, energy consumption per unit rises as equipment reliability declines, reinforcing both cost and sustainability pressures.

These challenges do not stem from a lack of effort. They reflect operating systems that have not kept pace with increasing complexity, creating a structural productivity ceiling that quietly erodes value.

Breaking through this ceiling requires more than incremental cost-cutting. It calls for a deliberate redesign of how work flows through the organisation, aligning process, technology, sustainability, and people.

This starts with visibility. An end-to-end view of operations can surface bottlenecks, duplication and misalignment. When production, procurement and maintenance data are integrated, organisations gain a clearer picture of performance across the asset lifecycle. With this foundation in place, organisations can shift from reactive to proactive management through:

• Predictive maintenance, reducing unexpected equipment failure

• Live performance dashboards, enabling real-time decision-making 

• Integrated data flows, improving coordination across functions

Addressing these systemic inefficiencies is central to PwC’s productivity methodology. Rather than introducing isolated improvements, the approach embeds continuous improvement behaviours and real-time performance tracking into daily operations. It functions as both a management system and a behavioural change mechanism, ensuring that digital investments are absorbed into the rhythms of frontline teams, supervisors and managers. In practice, this takes the form of:

• Tiered daily management routines, anchored in live KPI dashboards

• Leader standard work, clarifying what supervisors should observe and coach 

• Structured root-cause problem-solving, replacing reactive firefighting

The opportunity extends beyond individual organisations. Across the Make domain, there is clear potential to co-develop smart manufacturing solutions that drive continuous improvement on factory floors while embedding lean practices. This is particularly relevant for companies advancing sustainable packaging, agile supply chains, and ESG-aligned operations, alongside the growing need to support workforce transformation through digital upskilling and green skills development.

If implemented effectively, the impact could be tangible. Equipment availability could improve by 10–15%, with unplanned downtime reducing materially. Even a single-digit percentage reduction in material waste could translate into meaningful margin recovery. Improved schedule reliability would ease working capital pressure and strengthen relationships with customers. Importantly, greater process stability would likely enhance safety outcomes and reduce stress on frontline teams.

At the centre of this shift is the human dimension. Technology enables productivity, but it is behaviour that sustains it. This requires focused investment in:

• Artisan and supervisor capability

• Clear career and progression pathways

• Inclusive talent pipelines, strengthening long-term performance 

Strengthening these areas ensures that productivity gains are not only achieved, but sustained, creating more stable operations and more resilient performance over time.

Enhanced workforce productivity is what ultimately translates strategy into measurable outcomes, higher output, reduced waste, faster delivery, and improved quality. However, in today’s environment, productivity is no longer about doing more, but rather about working smarter through the integration of people and technology.

This is where Value in motion becomes critical. It recognises that value is not created in a single moment of transformation but is continuously generated over time through the way work is executed, through the ongoing interplay of strategy, technology, and human performance. This principle holds true across contexts, from a packaging line in Gauteng to a municipal water maintenance team.

The Make and Build domains represent one of the largest tangible value pools within this framework. Yet realising this value requires more than investment in technology alone. Organisations that fail to strengthen the human systems needed to activate and sustain these capabilities risk underutilised assets and unrealised potential. True value is unlocked when technology and workforce capability evolve together, reinforcing productivity as a continuous, system-wide effort rather than a one-time intervention.