INDUSTRY NEWS SELECT OFFERS HELP WITH SUBSCRIPTION RATES FOR 2021 Select has chosen not to increase subscription rates for 2021, in a further move to help members cope with the financial challenges caused by COVID-19. Subscription rates for the next 12 months will stay the same as 2020 for all Member businesses, and follows the three-month subscription refund issued by Select earlier this year. John McGhee, Director of Resources and Association Secretary, says: “As a not-for-profit organisation, we are here to put our Members’ needs first, so once again, that’s exactly what we are doing. “It was decided by Central Board and agreed at the AGM in September that there would be no increases to the subscription rates in 2021, and we are happy to roll this out to help Member firms of all sizes across Scotland.”
ABB ACCELERATES E-MOBILITY INNOVATION Designed to spur further innovations in e-mobility, ABB’s new $10 million, 3,600m2 facility is based on the Delft University of Technology campus, in the Netherlands and will drive the company’s future portfolio development, as well as R&D projects for electric vehicles. Along with an investment of $30 million into a global Centre of Excellence and production site for EV charging infrastructure, due to open next year in Italy, the facility in Delft underlines ABB’s plans to grow investments in sustaining its technology leadership. Frank Muehlon, Head of ABB’s global business for E-mobility Infrastructure Solutions, comments: “Innovation is in our blood – ABB has led the way in EV charging and is proud to have played a key role in driving adoption rates of electric vehicles across the world. That is why we wanted to locate our E-mobility Innovation Lab in Delft, in the heart of the university campus, where we are surrounded by the brightest tech talents and start-ups in The Netherlands.” The complex will house up to 120 specialists and the E-mobility Innovation Lab has been fitted with the latest technology to ensure that ABB chargers are compatible with all types of vehicle. Simulators have been built exactly for this purpose, with 95% of all tests to be conducted with a digital copy of vehicles. ABB, global.abb
The move follows the decision earlier this year to issue a 30% discount on 2020 subscription fees, with a total of £329,405 refunded. Members who had already paid their subscription in full received
the money back, with those paying by direct debit having only seven of the 10 instalments collected. The new move is among a number of measures that Select has introduced to
help Members through the pandemic, including online training, advice webinars and a dedicated COVID-19 hub. Select, select.org.uk
BUSINESSES STILL UNCLEAR OVER IMPLICATIONS OF BREXIT A new engineering services sector survey has revealed that just under one in three businesses (30%) have said they are still not clear about the forthcoming business implications of Brexit. Only a further third (28%) said they are ‘fully clear’ about the implications of the Brexit transition. Three quarters (75%) of respondents expect the cost of electrical and electronic products to either stay the same or rise after the transition deadline of 31 December 2020. However, although over 40% of respondents said product availability was a major factor on the horizon, fewer than one in five (17%) said they expected product availability to be negatively impacted. Half (49%) replied that they expect availability to broadly stay the same. Rob Driscoll, ECA director of legal and business, comments: “It is perhaps no surprise that uncertainty remains a central theme as we inch closer to the Brexit deadline. However, these figures also reveal a degree of confidence in the sector – confidence in the availability of materials, and of skilled and competent individuals, once we are no longer part of the EU.” Two thirds (66%) of businesses did not believe skills would be a significant problem after Brexit, and less than a fifth (18%) said they had adopted methods for dealing with skills issues linked to Brexit transition. This figure doubled for businesses with turnover above £20 million. ECA, eca.co.uk
81% OF UK ELECTRICIANS AREN’T SURE HOW TO USE SOCIAL MEDIA EFFECTIVELY Social media has transformed businesses in all industries, but despite helping many tradespeople get more work, 85% say they don’t know how to use it effectively. New research by IronmongeryDirect has explored how trade businesses currently use social media and how many are currently missing out on its benefits. Almost half (47%) of tradespeople say that having a social media presence helps them get more work, with Facebook being the main platform (22%). This is for several reasons, including the ability to build stronger client relationships (15%), get ahead of competitors (15%) and interact with community groups (22%). Such is the power of social media, one in six (16%) tradespeople believe it is now just as important, if not more, than traditional word of mouth. Because of this, 45% now actively advertise on at least one social platform and more than one in 10 (12%) use social media as their only form of marketing. However, despite recognising its importance, the vast majority of tradespeople say they are not using social media effectively. Nearly nine in 10 (85%) don’t know how to get the most out of it, with plumbers the least likely to maximise its potential (90%). Joiners are the most social savvy of all the trades, yet 79% still don’t know how best to use their channels to help their business. Electricians are just behind, at 81%. IronmongeryDirect, ironmongerydirect.co.uk
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