Hello and welcome to the latest issue of Manufacturing Today . In this issue , Alex Vazquez of Employbridge discusses the steps manufacturers can take to unlock the potential of the workforce . As the skills gap in the industry continues to widen , there has to be a step change - not just attracting new talent but retaining and even retraining it where necessary . Access his valuable insight on page 10 . Our Q & A with DS Smith gives a behind the scenes look at the codependency between innovation and sustainability , while in our Trends feature , Luke Smoothy highlights ‘ key criteria manufacturers must now implement ’ – turn to page 32 and see if any of these are on your agenda .