A nationwide poll has found that 91% of UK manufacturing staff believe they spend a significant portion of their day carrying out avoidable or low-value work.
The Censuswide survey of 1,000 employees, commissioned by manufacturing data platform Mithryl, covered roles from assembly technicians to design engineers across sectors including textiles, automotive, steel, pharmaceuticals, and utilities. Almost half of respondents said between 10% and 25% of their tasks were of little or no value, while 14% placed the figure higher than a quarter. One in 25 claimed more than half their work was wasted effort.
The results show that inefficiency is not limited to smaller operations. While 55% of staff in companies with 10–49 employees said they wasted at least a tenth of their day, the figure rose to 62% for organisations with more than 250 staff.
The poll also reveals broader frustrations. Almost all respondents (96%) said they spend time on tasks they know could be done more effectively, and 29% estimated that inefficiency accounts for more than a quarter of their working week. Electronics and pharmaceutical staff were among the most affected, with 63% and 77% respectively wasting more than 10% of their time.
The impact extends beyond productivity. Almost half of those surveyed said pointless tasks are demotivating, and nearly a quarter said it makes them want to find a new job. In chemicals, that figure rose to 39%. Team cohesion is also affected — 21% said inefficiency undermines workplace morale.
Respondents cited several reasons for low effectiveness. Forty-four per cent struggled to find information on how to complete a task, a problem especially acute in defence (82%) and pharmaceuticals (62%). More than half (54%) said a lack of knowledgeable colleagues limits their efficiency, and 56% feared their work would become harder when experienced staff retire. Meetings were another source of dissatisfaction, with 47% of workers calling them unproductive and 44% criticising siloed data and expertise.
Many see technology as the solution. More than six in ten respondents said automation could improve performance by removing manual data and reporting tasks. Around eight in ten logistics, quality control, and testing staff said their organisation would benefit from a unified platform for data and analysis. Just over half believed AI monitoring could improve effectiveness and highlight problems earlier.
But senior leadership comes in for criticism. Fifty-six per cent of respondents felt bosses are slow to adopt new technologies, while 38% said managers rarely act on workers’ suggestions to improve processes.
“These results should give every company leader pause for thought,” said Roger Zouein, Mithryl co-founder and CEO. “The UK cannot have a thriving, efficient manufacturing sector if most employees feel they are spending hours a week doing unproductive tasks, and a quarter of them want to quit their job.”
Mithryl, which develops an AI-driven platform for data integration and reporting in manufacturing, argues that better use of automation and analytics could reduce inefficiency and improve knowledge sharing across organisations.
The survey results highlight an uncomfortable truth for industry leaders: technology promises gains in productivity, but adoption is patchy, and workforce frustrations are mounting. With competition tightening, the UK’s manufacturers will need to demonstrate that efficiency is more than a boardroom slogan.
