Understanding What Matters Most in Smart Factory Transformation

A case study conducted with the FMK Aerospace

Case Study Authors

Zafer Kılıç (FMK Aerospace), Dr Ayşe Begüm Kilic-Ararat and Dr Arsham Atashikhoei (University of Bath)

Context

Digital technologies such as Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES) and Smart Factory solutions are increasingly being adopted to improve visibility, productivity, quality, and decision-making within manufacturing organisations. However, digital transformation initiatives often involve multiple stakeholder groups with different expectations regarding what constitutes success. Understanding these expectations early in the implementation process can help organisations align priorities, improve communication, and support more effective technology adoption.

To address this challenge, we developed a structured decision-making approach using the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP). Through pairwise comparison, the tool enables participants to evaluate and prioritise a range of business, operational, and human-centred outcomes associated with digital technology adoption. The process provides a transparent mechanism for capturing and comparing perspectives across stakeholder groups.

Objective

FMK Havacılık is a Turkish aerospace manufacturing company that develops high-precision component and system solutions with its production processes compliant with aviation standards and an engineering-focused approach. They had recently begun implementing a Smart Factory initiative based on Manufacturing Execution System (MES) technologies. As the implementation was still in its early stages, the company sought to understand which outcomes different stakeholder groups considered most important and where they expected the greatest impact from digitalisation. The objective of the workshop was to identify and compare digitalisation priorities across the organisation, create a shared understanding of success criteria, and support discussions around the future direction of the Smart Factory programme.

Approach

An in-person workshop was conducted at FMK Aerospace’s facilities in Ankara, Türkiye. The workshop involved 15 participants representing a broad cross-section of the organisation, including senior management, quality management, production, human resources, project management, and IT.

Participants completed the AHP survey by comparing 36 metrics relating to business performance, operational performance, and human-centred outcomes. The results were analysed for the organisation as a whole and for different stakeholder groups, including senior management, production and operations team, and support functions.

Insights

The analysis showed that participants expected the Smart Factory initiative to deliver its greatest value through human-centred and operational outcomes rather than purely financial measures. Human-Centric Metrics received the highest overall weighting, followed by Operational and Business Performance Metrics. Employee productivity, skills development, operational efficiency, product quality, knowledge management, and employee wellbeing were among the highest-ranked priorities.

Workshop discussions explained these priorities. Participants highlighted the difficulty of recruiting and retaining highly skilled employees in aerospace manufacturing, viewing workforce capability as a key driver of organisational performance. However, the results also revealed clear differences across stakeholder groups. Senior leaders placed greater emphasis on operational and business performance outcomes, whereas production and support teams prioritised employee productivity, skills development, knowledge management, and wellbeing. Comparing these perspectives was one of the most valuable outcomes of the workshop, providing senior management with a better understanding of how employees viewed the drivers of successful digital transformation.

Participants also recognised that Smart Factory technologies could improve visibility across manufacturing operations through access to real-time production data. They expected this to enable better monitoring of machine utilisation, identification of downtime causes, and clearer distinction between equipment- and operator-related issues. This increased transparency was seen as supporting more evidence-based decision-making while helping employees and managers better understand the factors influencing production performance.

They further emphasised that organisational outcomes are interconnected; for example, investments in employee capability can improve operational efficiency, product quality, customer satisfaction, and ultimately business performance. This highlights the value of evaluating digital transformation through a balanced set of human, operational, and business metrics.

Impact

“Machines are easy to buy; if you have the money, you can purchase them. People, however, are much harder to develop, recruit, and retain. We had the opportunity to see first-hand that it is a valuable tool and one that can generate positive outcomes in practice. During the discussions following the survey, we were able to witness this clearly within the context of FMK Aerospace. The most valuable outcome for us was the opportunity, as senior management, to compare our own perspectives with the approaches and views of our employees. I believe that creating more opportunities for this type of exchange and enabling employees to express their views openly will be highly beneficial, and we intend to increase similar practices within the company. I believe you have developed a tool that can benefit organisations across all sectors.”

Zafer Kılıç, General Manager at FMK Aerospace

For further information on this case study please contact the P-LD at P-LD@bath.ac.uk

Acknowledgement

This work was supported by the Economic and Social Research Council Impact Acceleration Account at the University of Bath ES/X004651/1.

This work was supported by the Innovate UK led Made Smarter Innovation Programme: People-Led Digitalisation Engagement and Impact Acceleration [Grant Reference UKRI1436] Centre for People-Led Digitalisation, at the University of Bath, University of Nottingham, and Loughborough University.