Feeling a real slowdown in project pipelines

I'm in [a relevant department like R&D/Operations/Manufacturing] and it feels like the faucet on new projects has been turned down to a trickle. We used to have a pretty steady stream of new ideas and development tasks, but lately, it's all about optimizing existing processes or 'sustaining engineering.' We're being pushed to get more out of what we already have, which, again, sounds like good business sense, but it's leading to a lot of idle time or rehashed work. Conversations with people in other divisions suggest a similar trend – fewer new hires, more scrutiny on expenses, and a general sense of 'wait and see.' Anyone else in a similar boat? Wondering if this is a company-wide strategy or just a sector-specific slowdown.