Dutch manufacturing sector launches initiative to strengthen competitiveness

Industry associations, manufacturing companies, technology partners and research institutions in the Netherlands have launched a joint initiative to strengthen the country’s industrial ecosystem through closer collaboration and digital integration.

At the opening of TechniShow/ESEF 2026, the partners signed the manifesto “Building a Future-Proof Dutch Manufacturing Industry.” The initiative translates recommendations from a report by Peter Wennink into concrete industry action.

The signatories outlined four key priorities for strengthening the Dutch manufacturing sector: establishing a shared digital foundation for the industry, adopting open standards to enable collaboration, improving supply chain efficiency through structured data exchange and strengthening international competitiveness through joint innovation.

The initiative reflects growing recognition that many production environments still operate with fragmented systems, where machines, ERP platforms, manufacturing execution systems and planning software function as isolated solutions. According to the industry partners, this limits scalability and innovation.

The sector therefore aims to promote process-driven digital integration, allowing different machines and software systems to be connected at the operational level. This would enable production, planning, logistics and quality management to function as an integrated system.

Technical solutions such as shared real-time data layers could support this integration, although the partners emphasize that standardization of processes and data structures remains the central objective.

The signing of the manifesto is intended as the starting point for a long-term cooperation program rather than a one-time declaration. Companies, industry organizations and research institutions have already worked together in the months leading up to the initiative to develop concrete improvement agendas, and additional companies are expected to join the initiative in the coming months.

The program is also intended to strengthen the global competitiveness of the Dutch manufacturing sector. Industry participants note that manufacturing clusters in Asia and the United States are investing heavily in digital infrastructure and industrial ecosystems.

Through closer collaboration and shared digital standards, the partners aim to strengthen the Netherlands’ leadership in digital supply chain cooperation, promote internationally interoperable standards and secure industrial production and innovation capabilities within Europe.

Source and Photo: Staalfederatie