Manufacturing revival

According to C Mark Ridgway OBE, president of the MTA: “When we say world class we think of our dynamic aerospace industry, we think of our four UK universities in the world’s top ten, our strong automotive industry, and a sector full of knowledge based high technology operations.

“But now we have to take the next step, and make world class come as standard right across our sector.” The question remains, how do we do this in a volatile fast changing marketplace?

If the recent economic downturn has had any benefit for the manufacturing sector, it is that there is new recognition that advanced engineering as a world class, wealth creating, research and development intensive, knowledge based sector has a critical role to play in our nation’s economic recovery. In this respect, the UK is on an upward trajectory.

Ridgway continues: “For world class to come as standard three areas, the three ‘I’s, are critical.

“The first is Internationalisation. Many of the trade barriers and borders of the 20th Century have been dismantled. But the difference is that the rules of the game are no longer set by a handful of countries either side of the Atlantic but by a much larger global group of nations of which we are but one player.

“I sit on UKTI’s Advanced Engineering Sector Advisory Board and I see the most innovative, focused, and agile businesses have a strong international strategy. They identify a market need, they work to ensure that their product and business model meets that need and they realise that they must keep flexible and evolve to stay relevant to changing market conditions.

The second ‘I’ is investment. When we talk about investment, the issues that most commonly come to mind are an investment in people, machinery and research and development.

“Commentators can fall into the trap of believing that innovation is something that only happens in labs carried out by fearsomely clever PhDs, but that is the wrong picture,” says Ridgway.

“Knowledge Transfer Partnerships, for example, are another way forward. There is no right or wrong way to get to world class.”

The UK has underinvested in this area for many years now, with the best standing out against a backdrop that is relatively disappointing. Manufacturing businesses need to invest between 5 and 10% of their turnover in research and development.

The third ‘I’ is Inspiration. Ridgway says: “This is the most difficult ingredient to capture; it is in effect the secret sauce of this world class dish.

I am passionate about engineering, about the skills of our people and the innovation of our firms.

I went back to business school because I felt challenged by some of the young graduates that we were employing, many from India, who were coming into my business with new ideas and questions, new theories on product development, and new paradigms on structures to optimise innovation. They inspired me, gave me clarity and made me aware of new possibilities.”

MACH
For many in manufacturing the biennial MACH exhibition is a bellwether for the state of the industry. It’s the biggest and best place to see and buy the technology that gets things made.

Graham Dewhurst, director general of the MTA says: “The show is cutting new ground. For the first time major OEMs, including Airbus and Rolls Royce, are exhibiting alongside their supply chain partners, enabling visitors to get a sense of the scope of the UK’s manufacturing sector. That’s really important because we have to build the supply chain’s strengths in order to take advantage of the potential for growth that exists as the economy picks up pace. Schemes like the Government’s Advanced Manufacturing Supply Chain Initiative are aiming to do just that and MACH 2014 offers a fantastic opportunity to build those links organically by engaging with the vast network of manufacturers who will exhibit and visit.”

2014 is a breakthrough year for new technologies at MACH. Additive Manufacturing, also known as 3D printing, is one of the hottest manufacturing stories of the year and some of the leading companies will be at MACH 2014 showing how the technology could change manufacturing although maybe not in the ways you might think.