TM April 2015

Hot topic Election 2015 What are the major parties promising the UK industrial sector?

Special Feature 85th Geneva Motor Show What the Brits brought to the table

Manufacturing Leadership A vital role Is the message for women manufacturers all wrong?

Manufacturing Technologies A toast to technology Who shone at the MTS’s night of nights?

Manufacturing Services Clean data How big data is infiltrating our washrooms

IT in Manufacturing Going to the next level When digital connections are not enough

Can UK steel survive in an evolving industrial world?

In partnership with:

INTERVIEW Dr Henrik Adam Chief Commercial Officer, Tata Steel Europe

www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Vol 18 Issue 3

National Apprenticeship Competition 2015 Manufacturing on the Moon Series vehicle production on the Moon Judging day: 19th May 2015

NAC 2014 winning team from Bombardier Apprentices from all years are invited to work in teams from their institution and build models to demonstrate their imagination and present at the competition site at Cranfield.

A team of national judges will select the winner.

For more information visit: www.national-apprenticeship-competition.org.uk

The National Manufacturing Debate .....now in its 6th year Theme: UK Reshoring Capability 19 and 20 May 2015 Vincent Building Auditorium, Cranfield University This is the opportunity for manufacturing professionals to discuss and debate current challenges in the industry and to network with colleagues from different sectors. Cranfield will publish a white paper on 20th May, with facts on manufacturing reshoring on the day.

19 May Visit the National Apprenticeship Competition, take part in the Manufacturing Alumni conference and the tours of key manufacturing facilities.

20 May National Manufacturing Debate The National Manufacturing Debate is chaired by Lord Alec Broers and the final debate will be presented by Nick Hussey (MD, The Manufacturer).

Keynote speakers include: • John Cridland, Director General, CBI • Tomas Jaskelevicius, Business Development Director, Arginta Group • Dick Elsy, CEO of HVM Catapult • David Kynaston, Chairman, AMSCI Investment Board • Paul Sloman, Partner, PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP • Harry Moser, Founder and President, Reshoring Initiative, USA • Dr. Felipe Rubio Castillo, General Director of CIDESI (Centre for Engineering and Industrial Development), Mexico • Ian Pearce, Managing Director, Brinsea Products

Register for fRee! www.national-manufacturing-debate.org.uk Sponsors:

Welcome

EDITOR’S INTRODUCTION

While there are still many uncertainties still lingering as we hurtle closer to the May General Election, one major aspect of the looming date is beginning to become more and more of a real possibility – the outcome.

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The overriding sentiment leading up to May 7 is, as George Eaton says in the New Statesman, that the British electorate has become “resolved to be irresolute”.

A real possibility we are facing, for the first time since 1974, is a hung parliament. The only difference between then and now, is that the aforementioned Government of the time was actually able to last a full term, delivering strong policies along the way.

Unfortunately, a replication of this stability seems highly unlikely in the current political landscape. Parties like the Scottish National Party have real swing and have the potential to change the balance of power. It seems as though both Labour and a few Tory MPs aren’t ruling out the possibility of having to side with the SNP in order to take majority.

Despite the political uncertainty, we are beginning to see something that resembles stability in areas directly affected by Government – one of which is the manufacturing sector.

The industrial sector relies heavily upon government support, and with momentum picking up in the sector; the calls for an industry-led recovery and economic rebalancing have never been louder.

EEF only recently released its top 10 priority list for the next government (bit. ly/1HKUsNQ), wherein Terry Scuoler urged whichever party or coalition that takes power to prioritise the massive leaps the manufacturing and engineering sectors have made over the tenure of the past two governments.

Cover image: One of the world’s largest ever castings is poured at Sheffield Forgemasters

2 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

“Achieving a true rebalancing of the economy and a step change in our productivity was never going to be a one or even two parliament task. The next

government, however it is made up, must commit to immediate policies which will build on and encourage growth, boost private sector investment and job creation,” Scouler says. And I agree.

Too often now, politics becomes solely focused only on the term ahead.

Long-term vision is cast aside as political powers focus more on the announcements than the follow through.

Significant steps need to be made to solidify the UK’s competitiveness throughout Europe. Energy taxes are creating extreme pressure on UK manufacturers, who are struggling to compete on an uneven playing field with Europe.

Science and innovation budgets should be protected to ensure the nation’s historical contribution to design and entrepreneurialism continues.

And most importantly, a dedicated strategy to ensure the talent we are creating today is encouraged to literally make the economic prosperity of the nation’s future, must become a priority.

Fortunately, this is a discussion we are beginning to hear from most camps.

Let’s just hope it’s a conversation that continues and yields actual results.

We will wait and see.

Callum Bentley Editor

Editorial Advisory Board

The Editorial Advisory Board ’s editorial advisory board provides insight and guidance to the editorial team on a regular basis, helping maintain the relevance and quality of the magazine’s content, both in print and online. The board also provides diverse and expert comment on key industrial developments.

Andrew Churchill Managing Director, JJ Churchill

Simon Edmonds Director, the Catapults Programme

Steve Evans

Manufacturing Engineer, FLAADS Manufacturing Engineering, ’s Young Apprentice of the Year 2014

Deirdre Fox

Director of the EPSRC Centre for Innovative Manufacturing in Industrial Sustainability

CEO, the Royal Academy of Engineering

Campbell Ferguson Director of Strategic Business Development, Tata Steel

Tony Hague MD, Power Panels Electrical Systems and Chairman of the Midlands Assembly Network

4 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

Global Manufacturing Director, Accolade Wines

Ben Taylor Assistant CEO, Renishaw Plc

Dave Mooney

Philip Greenish CBE

Beki Davies

Richard Lloyd

GCS&S Operations Team Leader, Spirit Aerosystems (Europe) Ltd and ’s Young Manufacturer of the Year 2014

Hywel Jarman Director of External Affairs, EEF

Managing Director, Drallim Industries

Pamela Petty Managing Director, Ebac Group

Andrew Peters Director, Siemens Congleton Facility

To find out more about our Editorial Advisory Board and the work they do to improve The Manufacturer magazine’s offering to its readers, go to: www.themanufacturer.com

Workshop storage like no other.

Built to Last in the UK Discover the full story at builttolast.bottltd.co.uk

ABOUT US

Meet the team Nick Hussey Chairman

Callum Bentley Editor

Nick has 20 years of experience in the publishing industry spanning titles in the UK, US, Asia and Australia.

In addition to his commercial experience Nick has also worked in government, spending a year as managing director of Manufacturing Insight, a programme aimed at changing the image of manufacturing among young people. He holds several non-executive directorships and is a founder member of the IET’s Manufacturing Policy Panel. n.hussey@hennikgroup.com

Callum joined Hennik Research in 2013 as editor of ’s sister publication, the Lean Management Journal, before taking over as Editor of in June. He has a background in news for web and print, working for major regional news organisations in Australia. Callum has a passion for the automotive and aerospace sectors. c.bentley@hennikgroup.com

David joined Hennik Research in 2012 managing the marketing across the business. He has nearly 25 years’ experience in the conference and publishing industry having worked for the likes of LexisNexis, Kaplan Hawksmere and Payroll World. In February 2014 he was appointed General Manager of Hennik Research. d.farrow@hennikgroup.com

IT Editor Malcolm Wheatley malcolm@malcolmwheatley.co.uk

Contributing Editor Ruari McCallion r.j.mccallion@btinternet.com

Reporter Andrew Putwain a.putwain@hennikgroup.com

Design

Victoria Fitzgerald Features Editor

David Farrow General Manager

Editorial

Victoria joined Hennik Research in January 2014 as editor of the Lean Management Journal after spending three years in New York City as a news journalist for an international online news organisation. She recently moved to as features editor where her focus has moved to industrial policy and initiatives driving the future of UK manufacturing. As a former teacher, Victoria has a passion for apprenticeships and education. v.fitzgerald@hennikgroup.com

Art Director Martin Mitchell martin@opticjuice.co.uk

Designer Alex Cole alex@opticjuice.co.uk

Sales and Events

Operations Manager Grace Gilling g.gilling@hennikgroup.com

Project Director Matt Chilton m.chilton@hennikgroup.com

Sales Manager Sarah Hough

Henry Anson Sales Director

Jonny Williamson Web Editor

Henry is responsible for Hennik Research’s commercial activities, developing new concepts and products for ’s readership. Henry is keen to build a bridge between the manufacturing community and the service sector which supports it. h.anson@hennikgroup.com

Eva Lindsay Event Production Manager Eva joined in 2012 having worked in the events industry for four years across a number of sectors, with her primary focus on defence. Drawing on her broad experience, Eva will be heading up the event content team and helping to grow and develop the event programme, with special focus on the company’s popular Factory Tours. e.lindsay@hennikgroup.com

Jonny joined having spent the past three years working as a print and online features journalist for global media outlets covering manufacturing, commercial aerospace and business leadership. Jonny is responsible for boosting and updating ’s online presence with a strong focus on community engagement. j.williamson@hennikgroup.com

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In order to receive your monthly copy of kindly email subscriptions@hennikgroup.com, telephone 0207 401 6033 or write to the address below. Neither The Manufacturer nor Hennik Research can accept responsibilty for omissions or errors.

Terms and Conditions Please note that points of view expressed in articles by contributing writers and in advertisements included in this journal do not necessarily represent those of the publishers. Whilst every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of the information contained in the journal, no legal responsibility will be accepted by the publishers for loss arising from use of information published. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written consent of the publishers.

The Manufacturer in partnership with EEF, the manufacturers’ organisation.

Working together to secure the future of manufacturing.

Elizabeth House, Block 2, Part 5th Floor, 39 York Road, London, SE1 7NQ Tel: +44 (0)207 401 6033 Fax: +44 (0)844 854 1010

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EEF is dedicated to the future of manufacturing.

Everything we do is designed to help modern manufacturing businesses evolve, innovate and compete in a fast-changing world. www.eef.org.uk

The Manufacturer is working collaboratively to drive innovation and manufacturing excellence in the UK. Our partnerships with leading industrial research centres, further education providers and trade bodies is an important part of this and is distributed directly to the alumni and membership of the following organisations:

Cranfield University EEF Institute for Manufacturing, University of Cambridge

Product design and prototyping innovation

Global manufacturing technologies

The UK’s only dedicated contract and subcontract manufacturing show

THREE CO-LOCATED EVENTS, THREE DAYS, ONE COMPLETE MANUFACTURING SOLUTION 2 - 4 JUNE 2015 | NEC BIRMINGHAM, UK UK manufacturing has grown and so have we.

Meet suppliers, source the latest technologies and develop new partnerships at this all-encompassing event for buyers, specifiers and key decision makers from all industry sectors.

Register to attend for free at www.subconshow.co.uk/manu

Featuring:

Brought to you by: Supplier Network

April 2015

CONTENTS

10 News and regular columns

IT in Manufacturing

A summary of manufacturing news and events with commentary on industrial research and policy 24 Out & About visits DUO UK in Manchester; luxury mobile phone brand, Vertu in Hampshire; and the Brother Factory in Wrexham.

26 Best of Online What you wanted to read most about on ’s February website 28 Hot Topic: Election fever Victoria Fitzgerald assesses the four major parties and which is most poised to bolster UK manufacturing 36 Special Feature: Geneva International Motor Show Jonny Williamson provides the highlights from the 85th Geneva International Motor Show 38 Sector Focus: The steel deal Ruari McCallion examines the changing landscape of the steel industry as demand increases and the sector adapts 44 Interview: Pedal to the metal Dr Henrik Adam, Chief Commercial Officer for Tata Steel Europe Ltd tells Victoria Fitzgerald how UK steel is striving forward 48 60 second interview: Mark Tomlinson, Group Development Director, Sheffield Forgemasters, discusses stability and growth in the British steel industry

78 A system for success: MRT Castings, reveals how it overhauled its in-house green screen system to keep up with the firm’s development and expansion

Pillar features Manufacturing Leadership 58 A vital role: Jane Robinson, Director at Cutting Technologies, tells why manufacturing has its PR all wrong in trying to draw young women into the sector

Workforce & Skills 62 National Apprenticeship Week: Jonny Williamson rounds up the poignant items from the 2015’s annual celebration of apprenticeships 64 Snapshots: County Durham sheet metal manufacturer, Hydram, shakes up its apprenticeship programme, and the Imperial War Museum Duxford and BAE team up to inspire youngsters into STEM

Manufacturing Technologies 66 Using big data to drive fuel efficiency: Jonny Williamson quizzes Dr Angus Webb, one of several University-based inventors the Royal Academy of Engineering’s Enterprise Hub is supporting as it turns its attention to fledgling companies 68 A toast to technology: Callum Bentley reveals the best bits of the Manufacturing Technologies Association Annual Dinner and Awards

Manufacturing Services 70 Clean Data: How tracing traffic in the nation’s bathrooms is increasing workforce efficiency

8 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

80 Talk of the Industry: Terry Scuoler talks future workforce

INBOUND REPORT EON Energy Management Report

NEWS

www.themanufacturer.com/news

Special Focus Budget 2015 Key points: South West to receive £7bn in transport investment National Minimum Wage will rise by 20p an hour to £6.70 from October Corporation tax to be cut to 20% in two weeks’ time Fuel duty increase scheduled for September is cancelled

George Osborne has revealed what could be his last Budget as Chancellor, stating that “Britain is growing, creating the jobs and leading the way; Britain is walking tall again.”

P

rior the unveiling, EEF urged the Chancellor to focus on measures which would continue to have a measureable impact on sustaining and underpinning economic growth.

Among others, the trade organisation called for the compensation package for energy intensive industries to be brought forward to offset the “crippling cost of energy.”

Commenting after the Budget announcement, EEF chief executive, Terry Scuoler said Osborne’s decision to bring forward compensation for industries facing vast and uncompetitive energy costs, such as steel makers, was welcome, but noted that the full package “needs to be in place as soon as possible.”

CBI director general, John Cridland said the Budget was the ideal chance for the Chancellor to support growth and investment well beyond the Election, and speaking afterwards seemed pleased with the result.

“Stability and consistency are what businesses need to grow and prosper.

This budget sets the tone, providing a clear plan for fiscal health and growth,” Cridland stated, adding “the reduction of the headline rate of Corporation Tax

10 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

is a meaningful step in making the UK the most competitive tax regime in the G20.”

Other reactions weren’t so optimistic.

Chief executive of composite processing equipment manufacturer Surface Generation, Ben Halford described the Budget as “failing to address the biggest issue facing SME manufacturers…recruiting quality, skilled staff.”

Halford added that every year the UK faces a major shortfall in engineering skills, a mounting threat to the nation’s economic recovery.

David Brimelow of Manchester-based polythene packaging manufacturer noted how positive it was to hear more on the Northern Powerhouse concept, describing the fact that Manchester will now keep 100% of the addition growth in its business rates as a “significant step in empowering the regions and rebalancing the country away from London and the financial sector.

“Having the power to make decision over crucial local infrastructure, coupled with the news on business rates, means [the region has] a real advantage in generating additional growth. For me though, businesses can’t simply wait for politicians, whether local or

Funding for a new national plan for ultra-fast broadband to nearly all homes in the country Automotive industry to receive £100m in investment in the race to driverless technology Eight new enterprise zones across Britain – including Blackpool and Plymouth North Sea oil industry to receive £1.3bn in support through four new measures New tax allowance to encourage investment in North Sea

Stability and consistency are what businesses need to grow and prosper. This budget sets the tone, providing a clear plan for fiscal health and growth

in Westminster, to take the lead, the businesses community itself has a real role to play,” Brimelow declared.

Leader of the opposition, Ed Miliband summed up his feelings, by stating that this was a Budget that “no-one will believe, from a Government that no-one trusts and isn’t on their side.”

MANUFACTURING NEWS

GOVERNMENT

Manufacturing firms urged to Do More Online. The Government’s Do More Online campaign aims to highlight the risk that small businesses’ future growth will be hampered because they aren’t doing enough online and are missing out on opportunities to find more customers, become more efficient and save money. With Government research suggesting that nearly two million UK businesses are not online, and of those that are; over two thirds are not transactional, Entrepreneur-in-Residence, Simon Devonshire, commented: “I cannot think of a business to whom being online is not now vital to their trade, irrespective of their ambition to grow. I think those businesses that embrace the digital opportunity are improving their ability to reduce costs; to scale-up; and possibly even export.” bit.ly/DoMoreOnline Number of firms receiving UKTI export support trebles. More than 3,000 medium sized businesses (MSBs) are now benefiting from Government support to break into new markets overseas, up from 1,000 12 months ago.

MSBs play a vital role in the economy – despite making up just 0.5% of all firms, they currently account for around a fifth of employment and 25% of turnover in the UK. This contribution is set to grow and according to CBI estimates, could be worth up to £50bn to the UK economy by 2020. Helping MSBs export will also benefit small UK companies, with 70% of MSB suppliers originating from our domestic economy. bit.ly/UKTIsupport

APPRENTICES

Number of people taking part in apprenticeships and traineeships is on the rise, new figures reveal.

Provisional figures for the first half of the 2014/15 academic year show significant growth in the number of people on an apprenticeship or traineeship compared to the same period last year. Almost 670,000 people were learning while earning with an apprenticeship during the first half of the year, including more than 400,000 16-24 year olds.

Meanwhile, traineeships continue to gain momentum, with more than 9,000 traineeships started since August alone.

Traineeships give young people the essential skills and work experience they need to get an apprenticeship or other job. bit.ly/ApprenticeshipsRise

Barkley Plastics started with four people and now employs 112.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Record year marks five decades of manufacturing for Barkley. One of Birmingham’s best-known manufacturers, Barkley Plastics is on course to smash the £7m barrier for the first time in its 50-year history, and all because of an advert in the local newspaper. Barkley Plastics, a plastic injection and toolmaking specialist, is celebrating the landmark anniversary in style after bringing a number of new automotive contracts home and launching its own line of PVC floor tiles called ‘Plasfloor’. More than £600,000 has been added to turnover in the past twelve months, with eight new jobs created taking the total workforce to 112, three of whom are currently completing their apprenticeships. bit.ly/BarkleyPlastics

FUNDING & FINANCE

WMG secures £14.5m funding for advanced steel research. The group will work with Tata Steel to take forward this crucial national collaboration which will help transform UK steel production, and includes research into emerging and breakthrough technologies. Research will combine the disciplines of materials; physics; chemistry; mechanical and chemical engineering; manufacturing; mathematics; statistics, and computer science to address hypothesis driven fundamental questions, enabling new generation value-added products for major steel application sectors including automotive, construction, energy & power, engineering and lifting & excavating. bit.ly/WMGfunding

COMPANY INVESTMENT

Jaguar Land Rover to expand its advanced engineering and design centre in Coventry. The latest multi-million pound investment by JLR will house highly-skilled product development engineers and support the company’s creation of high technology ultra-low emission vehicles for its customers in 180 markets around the world. The company has completed the purchase of an additional 62 acres at Whitley, more than doubling the current 55-acre site and adding an area equivalent to the size of more than 30 football pitches. It is investing more than ever before in new technologies and facilities, and in the financial year to the end of March 2016 the business will spend over £3bn on product creation and capital expenditure, launching 12 major new product actions. bit.ly/JLRengineeringanddesign April 2015 | Issue 3 | Volume 18 | www.themanufacturer.com 11

NEWS www.themanufacturer.com/news

MANUFACTURING NEWS

ANNOUNCEMENTS

TECHNOLOGY

Revolutionary new 3D printer technology delivers goods 25 times faster.

Developed by Carbon3D, the technology promises to significantly reduce the amount of time required to 3D print objects. Called Continuous Liquid Interface Production (CLIP), it uses light and oxygen to selectively cure a polymer resin. Targeted UV light is shone into a pool of liquid polymer, allowing for the continuous extrusion of an object. The company believes its technology is 25 -100 times faster than traditional 3D printing processes and up to 1,000 times stronger. Printing at these speeds could potentially revolutionise manufacturing, allowing companies to rapidly prototype new parts, and test them in mere minutes. bit.ly/Carbon3D A complex 3D object is printed using CLIP technology (Image courtesy of Carbon3D).

Professor boosts AME welding and joining capabilities. An industry specialist who helped prevent Venice from flooding has joined the UK’s first Faculty on the Factory Floor at the AME. The Institute for Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering (AME) has secured a major coup by appointing Steve Jones as its Professor for Welding and Joining Sciences. Regarded by many as a global expert in his field, the former welding apprentice joins from RollsRoyce and will be responsible for enhancing AME’s ability to bid for and deliver new technology projects in automotive, aerospace, energy, nuclear, oil and rail. He has also been given the role of developing the materials and joining cell at the new 1700 sqm manufacturing hub, while helping guide the next generation of engineers studying towards the BEng and MEng degree. bit.ly/AMEProfessor

WORKFORCE & SKILLS

Ruth McKernan CBE, new Chief Executive of Innovate UK

APPOINTMENTS

Ruth McKernan appointed chief executive of Innovate UK. McKernan, who holds a BSc in Pharmacology and Biochemistry and a PhD in Molecular Neuroscience from Kings College London, has had a distinguished career in the pharmaceutical industry. As a scientist, she is best known for her research on ligand-gated ion channels with over 120 publications and 15 patents to her name. She has headed research sites for Merck and Pfizer, most recently creating two new research units in Cambridge – Pfizer Regenerative Medicine and Neusentis, which discovers and develops medicines for pain and sensory disorders. Having previously worked extensively with Innovate UK as interim co-chair of the Cell Therapy Catapult. In 2013, she was awarded a CBE for services to business, innovation and skills. bit.ly/McKernanInnovateUK

12 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

Gender issues still exist in manufacturing. More than 80% of workers in full-time manufacturing roles believe gender discrimination is still present in the work place, according to a new poll commissioned by Investors in People. The study revealed 23% of employees in the sector think they may have experienced discrimination in the workplace due to their gender, 4% below the UK average. 15% believe it has negatively impacted their pay, 11% lower than the UK average and 6% have been put off having a child due to the perceived career limitations it would have, compared to the 8% UK average. However, 61% of employees in the sector think the situation is improving. bit.ly/MfgGenderIssues

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Organisations and interviews featured in this edition include: Synlait Farms, PO Construction, Bill Bellows, Michael Ballé, Jon Miller, Jeffery Liker, Mike Rother.

IN THIS ISSUE: Science of lean: Jeffery Liker, professor at the University of Michigan, and leadership speaker, Mike Rother, explore whether treating lean as a practical science could improve results.

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organisations edition inclu and interviews featu red in this de: eaton Hyd rauli council, uk cs, the uk ministry of justice, Police forc solihull netland, john e, the Bicheno, deb British library, torb jørn H. bie simpson and joseph in tHis issu Paris. e: from capa bility to prac at the uk tice: Head ministry of of Business justice, rhia change continuous n Hamer, improvem exam ent in the balanced cont ines publ and evidence ribution of capability ic sector and how a , meaning is the key ful practice to transform going lean ing it. the pay off a budg solihull way: as the public secto in their own et deficit, many coun r tries to cils are hands by cutti savings usin ng waste and taking matters g making sens transformationlean practices. kim ible silco at solihull ck, metropolitan head of lean lean enfo discusses. rcem nottingham ent: Harry Barton, professor at his 2013 studBusiness school shar es his find ings from forces acro y of implementing lean in five ss the uk, high to reinstate police trust and conf lighting lean as a enhancin g police emp idence in policing mechanism , while loyee enga the leaning gement. library: Bud expectations get cuts and lean natio are compelling the publincreased customer nwide. Hea ic secto d of documen r to deploy services at the British library, and t delivery and custome part of the 42-year-old y appleya rd, documen r institution’s ts lean journey.

NEWS www.themanufacturer.com/news

AUTOMOTIVE

British cars becoming even more British. Vehicles are being made with more British-sourced parts as the UK automotive industry’s renaissance continues apace, new Automotive Council research reveals. The report shows that domestic component makers sold 19% more products to British car producers last year than in 2013. The figures are an important step in the right direction for the UK automotive supply base.

Currently around one third of the components in a UKbuilt car are domestically sourced, compared to more than 90% in the mid-1970s.

However, auto manufacturing in the UK is undergoing rapid growth – British car production has increased by more than 50% since 2009, and this is creating new opportunities for domestic suppliers. bit.ly/BritishCarsBritishParts

Robotic prosthetic hand enabling regained dexterity and ability.

TECHNOLOGY

Government wants UK to become global leader in robotics. The Government has published its response to the Robotics and Autonomous Systems Special Interest Group 2020 Strategy, stating that it recognises the need to build on local and national technology to support this investment and to raise the profile internationally of the UK’s world class position. It also confirmed that it will implement the creation a Robotics and Autonomous Systems (RAS) Leadership Council to enable industry, academia and Government to collaborate on the planning and execution of the RAS strategy. bit.ly/GovtRobotics

Enthuse young people to take up vital careers in engineering

Follow us on

With not enough young people taking Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) at further education, many UK companies are facing a skills shortage.

Independent, educational charity, The Smallpeice Trust is passionate about closing this skills gap and enthusing the next generation of engineers. Working in partnership with some of industry’s leading organisations, we offer students an engaging, hands-on introduction to the rewarding careers available to them.

From sponsoring STEM Days and Clubs, to mini competitions and residential courses, there are many ways in which your company can get involved with The Smallpeice Trust. To find out more about the benefits of being a Smallpeice Partner, contact our Chief Executive, Dr. Kevin P Stenson on 07899 663 280 or email kevins@smallpeicetrust.org.uk.

&

www.smallpeicetrust.org.uk 14 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

Big things happen with The Smallpeice Trust

MANUFACTURING NEWS

TECHNOLOGY

Advanced low energy technology reaches milestone. Global materials technology firm, Lucideon has put a £1.9m Regional Growth Fund award to good use by developing technology capable of radically reducing energy use in the ceramics industry – one of the UK’s most energy-intensive sectors. Described as a world-first in the development of pioneering low-energy firing technology – based on ‘field enhanced sintering’, the project is now significantly closer following a commercial breakthrough by the project’s engineers and scientists.

The technology’s first commercial result has been produced, 15 x 15cm tiles; all showing the same strength as tiles made using traditional, energy-intensive methods. The technology reduces the temperature needed to fire from 1150°C to 850°C (and as low as 600°C) and can cut fuel bills by a quarter or more. It can also drop the time needed to fire ceramics from around 45 minutes to as little as 10 minutes – a process that not only slashes energy bills but also enables production to move towards more bespoke, shorter runs. bit.ly/LowEnergyTech

JOBS

Plans to turn London’s iconic black cab green received a major boost in March as Chinese manufacturer Geely revealed it would invest £250m in a new Coventry factory, creating up to 1,000 jobs. The London Taxi Company (LTI) owner said the new purpose built facility will focus on building the new electric and ultra-low emission taxis that are expected to hit the market in 2017, as well as on further research and development. Following the news, ministers have today announced £45m to support the roll out of greener taxis.

A £20m fund will be made available to local authorities to support the rollout of ultra-low emission taxis across the UK. The money will be available to reduce the upfront cost of purpose built taxis and to install charging infrastructure for taxi and private hire use. A further £25m has been set aside specifically for the Greater London Area to help taxi drivers cover the cost of upgrading to a greener vehicle. Transport Minister Baroness Kramer said: “Today’s announcement means ultra low-emission taxis will be the smart choice for more taxi drivers and everyone will benefit from improved air quality and greener travel.”

Dates for your diary APRIL

21-23

Sustainability Live!

Held at Birmingham NEC, Sustainability Live! brings together the ET&ES, ICU, NEMEX and IWEX exhibitions. Focusing on the environmental, land remediation, energy and water sectors respectively, the event stages conferences, seminars and networking with industry achievement and excellence recognised at the Industry Achievement Awards ceremonies. www.sustainabilitylive.com

28-29

Making Pharmaceuticals Held at the NMM Exhibition Centre in Birmingham, the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) is to take a role in compiling the content of Making Pharmaceuticals – the only event in the UK dedicated to the detailed and complex issues associated with sourcing, manufacturing, outsourcing and delivering consistent pharmaceutical products to the market www.making-pharma.com

28

Lancashire Manufacturing Week: Innovation & Creativity Held at the Media Lab at the University of Central Lancashire, the Manufacturing club is an initiative borne out of a collaboration between Moore and Smalley, HSBC, Manufacturing Advisory Service and various manufacturing sector organisations.

The programme of events will showcase inspiring success stories and provide access to a wide range of business support to help the region’s manufacturing businesses grow and prosper. www.mas. businessgrowthservice.greatbusiness.gov.uk/events/lancashiremanufacturing-week-innovation-creativity/

29-30

Med-Tech Innovation EXPO 2015 Held in Coventry, this is an event for the UK medical device R&D, design and manufacturing industry and will be hosted by Medilink UK and Med-Tech Innovation. The conference will address key issues facing industry, including innovation, internationalisation, NHS adoption, supply chains and skills. www.mtiexpo-uk.com

MAY

6-7

All-Energy Conference & Exhibition The All-Energy exhibition and conference held in Glasgow is the UK’s largest event devoted to renewable energy. It is relevant to companies actively involved in all areas of the renewable energy industry of wind (onshore and offshore), wave, tidal, hydro, hydrogen and fuel cells, solar and biofuels. www.all-energy.co.uk

23-24

Global Manufacturing Festival: Sheffield Held at the University of Sheffield’s building, The Diamond, the festival is set to be Britain’s biggest specialist manufacturing event in 2015, the GMF is a unique opportunity for smaller businesses to understand what’s coming next and how to sell into global markets. Its aim is to help SMEs to understand the supply chains for a broad range of high growth market sectors, how they might access them, and where to focus investments to gain future business. www.globalmanufacturingfestival.com/

April 2015 | Issue 3 | Volume 18 | www.themanufacturer.com 15

FOR THE DIARY

Upcoming Events

Connect with our events team on twitter: @TM_Events. For general enquiries or to book your place, email events@hennikgroup.com or call us on 020 7401 6033 (Opt 3). Stating which event you would like to attend and your contact details.

3D Printing and Additive Manufacturing Free for subscribers*

28 April, 2015, Maple House etc. venues, Birmingham With versatility and consumer-driven products starting to heavily influence manufacturing, now is the time to invest in advanced technology.

This year’s 3D Printing and Additive Manufacturing Conference will provide you with information on the materials, applications and techniques involved in this exciting new field. Learn how through the simple convergence of advanced technology and traditional manufacturing processes, you’ll be positioning yourself ahead of the competition.

Early Bird: £325 +VAT If booked on or before 15 April 2015

21 May 2015, Suffolk Philips AVENT, winners of the World Class Manufacturing award, are the leading manufacturers of parenting and baby products. They have successfully automated continuous flow production lines, implemented lean throughout their whole company and are now working to progress beyond Phase 4. This factory tour will allow you to learn more about Philips AVENT’s award winning site, as well as, the impressive lean journey they have embarked on. themanufacturer.com/factory-tours #TMFactoryTours

Factory Tour**: Xtrac

Early Bird: £325 +VAT If booked on or before 15 April 2015

21 May 2015, Berkshire Xtrac is a worldwide leader in the design and manufacturing of the transmission system and a triple winner of The Manufacturer Awards. In 2014, they won The Manufacturer of the Year, Leadership and Strategy and the Medium Sized Enterprise of the Year awards’. Attend this unique factory tour and learn from this award winning manufacturer.

Connect MES

£195 +VAT including accommodation***

17 June, 2015, Birmingham Understanding how best to streamline production and access data in real time is critical to running a modern and dynamic business. MES will be key in achieving this. Connect MES is a unique event providing delegates with the opportunity to meet with leading MES solution providers, condensing six months of research into a single day. mesconnect.co.uk #MESConnect

Innovate

Free for subscribers*

24 June 2015, Birmingham Innovation can lead to the development of new technology, increased sustainability, and higher return on investment, helping your business achieve long term growth. Whether you’re looking to overcome research and development barriers, or collaborate with leading industry partners, this year’s Innovate seminar shares the solutions you need to realise your manufacturing potential, and help you become the most pioneering manufacturers within your field. themanufacturer.com/innovate #TMInnovate

themanufacturer.com/3DAdditive #TM3D | #TMAddMfg

themanufacturer.com/factory-tours #TMFactoryTours

Connect ERP

Unlocking Finance

£195 +VAT including accommodation***

Free for subscribers*

The Manufacturer MX Awards 2015

14 May, 2015, Reading

10 June 2015, London

30 June 2015

The Unlocking Finance Seminar offers manufacturer-led guidance on the full range of financing options available to you. It will explore mainstream and nonmainstream financing options; national landscape and knowledge infrastructure for accessing finance and look at an export strategy to aid growth. This event will provide you with a starting platform if you are looking to raise funds to export, innovate, enter a new supply chain, or explore crowdfunding possibilities.

The Manufacturer MX Awards are dedicated to encouraging and promoting competitive manufacturing in the UK, and celebrating the very best in the industry annually. With a range of categories tailored to suit manufacturing businesses of all sizes and sectors, these awards provide the opportunity to gain valuable business improvement advice and industry-wide recognition for your achievements, your employees and your business.

themanufacturer.com/ unlocking-finance #TMFinance

themanufacturer.com/awards #TMMXAwards

Exclusively for companies looking to implement or upgrade their ERP system. Connect ERP has changed the way UK businesses approach software selection by minimising the overall time and effort involved in qualifying potential enterprise software vendors.

This unique event offers a one-of-a-kind opportunity for you and your team to meet the leading enterprise software providers one-to-one and hear from other companies that have successfully implemented ERP. erpconnect.co.uk #ERPConnect

16

Factory Tour**: Philips AVENT

Entry Deadline****

*Subscribers to The Manufacturer are guaranteed a place. If you do not wish to subscribe, there will be a cost of £395 +VAT per delegate from manufacturing companies. £995 +VAT per delegate - standard booking fee for delegates from consultancies/solution providers. **For manufacturers only. All early bird discounts require payment at time of registration and before the cut-off date in order to receive any discount. Once the early bird offer expires, standard delegate rate £395 +VAT will apply. All prices are exclusive of VAT. ***The £195 +VAT rate is for delegates taking part in meetings and includes accommodation. Delegates who don’t want to take part in the meetings will be charge the full event price £395 +VAT. If you would like to book your own accommodation, the price will remain at £195 +VAT. ****For full terms and conditions please visit themanufacturer.com/awards. T&Cs apply.

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APPOINTMENTS

Ian Wright

Food and Drink Federation

The Food and Drink Federation (FDF) has appointed Ian Wright to lead the organisation which represents the largest manufacturing sector in the UK. Wright, who was corporate relations director with major drinks company Diageo, will join the Federation before Easter. He succeeds Melanie Leech who left the organisation just before

Peter Moelgg

Christmas to join the British Property Federation. Jim Moseley, a former President of the Federation who has been acting as director general since Leech’s departure, will continue in the role until after Wright is installed.

Wright has spent more than two decades in senior management positions with two of the UK’s most important

businesses Diageo and Boots The Chemists. For 14 years he was corporate relations director of Diageo. He was a member of the executive committee and responsible for representing the company to governments, NGOs and the media around the world.

metal products for engines, chassis, transmissions and driveline systems.

Peter will head engineering across the two divisions, leveraging synergies to identify and bring to market innovative, leading technologies for GKN’s expansive automotive customer base. He joined GKN in 1979 and has

held a number of senior engineering and general management positions in GKN Driveline and GKN Powder Metallurgy, most recently as president Europe and Asia Pacific for GKN Sinter Metals.

He has established a GKN Automotive Technology Council to help develop new solutions.

GKN

Peter Moelgg has been appointed to the position of president of engineering GKN Automotive, covering the GKN Driveline and GKN Powder Metallurgy divisions.

GKN Driveline is the world’s leading supplier of automotive driveline systems and solutions, while GKN Powder Metallurgy produces precision powder

Chris Benning & Beverley Fox Two new appointments at TydenBrooks Security Products Group’s European logistics centre in Worcester, England, further strengthen the operations and sales support teams in direct response to increased demand Europe-wide.

Bringing over 20 years’ experience within the security seal industry, Chris Benning, recently appointed

Nigel Clifford

TydenBrooks

as operations manager, is the latest addition to the EMEA management team. Mr Benning has already made an impact in overseeing the steppingup of local manufacturing and is keen to prove that with a focus on quality, automation and efficiency, the world-class manufacturing of security products will continue across all TydenBrooks production facilities – in

EMEA, Asia and the Americas.

For Beverley Cox, the latest addition to the UK based sales support team, a 10 year background in the security seal industry at ITW Envopak (where she worked with operations manager, Chris Benning), places her in an ideal position to bring production and customer care experience together for the benefit of both customers and colleagues.

Ordnance Survey

Nigel Clifford has been announced as the new chief executive of the Ordnance Survey (OS).

Mr Clifford will take up leadership of the £145 million turnover organisation in June, bringing extensive experience of international software, telecoms and services including complex joint venture and public sector enterprises. This experience will be vital to OS

in its role as Britain’s mapping agency, whose accurate location-based data underpins key public and private sector functions. Nigel will also lead OS into a new era as a Governmentowned company and an exciting future of innovation and partnerships at the heart of the geospatial information sector.

OS works with a diverse range of customers and partners in government,

business and consumer sectors across Great Britain and internationally. It produces and manages data of unparalleled depth, breadth and accuracy, maintaining the definitive record of Britain’s geographic features and producing innovative maps and services for a global customer base. OS has around 1,200 employees with a head office in Southampton, where Nigel will be based.

To notify The Manufacturer of your company’s appointments, please contact Callum Bentley at: c.bentley@hennikgroup.com or: 0207 401 6033

18 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

Legally MIND minded THE GAP & DIGITALLY MADE

LEGALLY minded.

Do you have the right manufacturing process “knowhow”? Robert Bryan, partner at BPE Solicitors LLP explains.

‘‘K

now-how”, it doesn’t have a definition in English law, although the EU technology transfer block exemption defines it as “a package of practical information, resulting from experience and testing, which is: secret; substantial and identified”. Despite the lack of legal definition, in UK manufacturing it can prove to be one of your most valuable assets.

Unlike true intellectual property rights, there are no statutory rules for determining the first owner of know-how, or to whom an obligation of confidence is owed. The obligation may be owed to the person who generated the knowhow or to the person who paid for it. This will be determined by the contract governing its use.

Remember, when thought is being given to how to protect the know-how on which you depend, it can be destroyed by unauthorised disclosures or careless practices. It does not confer a monopoly right, so cannot be used to prevent the use or disclosure of similar information independently developed, and may not be easy to protect if you can’t identify what is really confidential.

Despite these limitations, if use is necessary before a patent application is filed, the law on confidential information can be used. Indeed, it may be the only way of providing protection; certain materials, like business methods and computer programmes, scientific theories or mathematical methods are specifically excluded from patent protection in Europe.

In manufacturing, formulae not capable of being analysed in the final product, processes, and improvements to products or processes are all often best protected by a “know-how agreement”. If the know-how is only going to be valuable for a short time, consider using a lock out agreement which precludes negotiation with other parties. Key always though, is knowing how you can, legally, use that confidential information to greatest effect.

20 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

Digitally Made.

T

he Internet of things and machine to machine technologies continue to play a major role in today’s manufacturing sector. Increasing demand for wireless networks, innovative cloud applications and new sensor devices are all playing their part to fuel increased demand. A new market research report published in March, by Transparency Market Research defines this growing industry: “The global Internet of Things Hayden (IoT) and Machine-To-Machine (M2M) market is segmented into Richards four major categories, on the basis reveals the of technology and platforms into Radio frequency identification secret to (RFID), Sensor nodes, Gateways, meeting the Cloud management, Near field communications (NFC), challenges of Complex event processing (CEP), M2M and IOT. Supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA).”

These segments all combine to form a new era of competitive advantage if manufacturers can fully embrace all the technology on offer. I am sure while many would agree that the Internet of things is a major game changer, what we may be witnessing is the third wave of that comparative advantage. In a series of books, the first titled Competitive Advantage, Harvard Business School professor Michael Porter describes three types of competitive advantages. The first example describes IT automation, the second describes the interconnectivity of IT, and the third describes what we now know as the Internet of Things. The main differentiating factor here is unlike previous eras, technology is directly embedded in products and this leads directly to increase productivity, greater innovation and enhanced economic growth. It is also worth pointing out that the first and second waves resulted in large productivity gains and economic growth.

In a Harvard Business Review essay, both Porter and James Heppelmann CEO of PTC make a case for the importance of IOT, rating it higher than the arrival of the internet.

Porter suggests these new innovations will require skill sets not traditionally found within the manufacturing sector.

Of course we are all aware of the STEM skill issue and that there may be a workaround by simply purchasing the cloud technology required without having to depend on in house staff.

From all this we can conclude that connected devices in the factory reflect a whole new set of technological possibilities for the manufacturer limited only by imagination. One fact has not changed and that is the dynamic rules of competition and competitive advantage which for now remain constant. The challenge for the boardroom requires executives have a full grasp these old rules in relation to new opportunities.

April 2015 | Issue 3 | Volume 18 | www.themanufacturer.com 21

Letters to the editor

Production lines

Letters to the Editor Kieron Salter Managing Director, KWSP

Despite the recent fall of 30% in certain 3D company stocks*, the long-term future for the sector is still positive.

Clearly, the anticipation of the technology’s widespread use across industrialised nations has attracted big money from both private and institutional investors. However, 3D printing has been a victim of its own success in some ways – driven by the explosion in its domestic and entry level use. While it’s been effective in enabling users to do ‘impossible stuff’, the downside is due to the low added-value and therefore poor margins in the smaller end of the market. Only true commercial industrial usage will bring the technology back into value.

Meaningful revenues, and therefore sustainable growth, will only come from industrial design, tooling and applications where additive manufacturing can improve and 3D printing has been a enhance existing victim of its own success in processes.

However, the some ways – driven by the adoption of new explosion in its domestic and manufacturing methodologies entry level use cannot take place overnight. The fiscal realities of industrial supply chains – from concept design to validated product – mean that step changes in manufacturing need to be tested and adopted gradually, given the significant risk of switching to new technologies.

As the development of additive manufacturing moves into mainstream industrialised sectors such as medical, automotive and aerospace, its use is becoming increasingly validated by engineers and designers.

It is a crucial coming of age moment for 3D printing, which is demonstrating its value as part of the 21st century’s manufacturing infrastructure.

Additive manufacturing’s ability to cut out expensive steps in traditional engineering processes, reduce the number of businesses involved in the supply chain, cut down on waste and transportation costs, while facilitating ondemand, bespoke manufacturing are its true strengths. Once industry demonstrates the true commercial worth of additive manufacturing, values will be reflected in share prices and company valuations.

22 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

Bill Bacon Managing Director Automotive, DHL Supply Chain

Earlier this month, The Manufacturer reported that the UK’s manufacturing growth rate has continued to strengthen, with the Markit/CIPS Purchasing Manager’s Index (PMI) rising to a seven-month high of 54.1 in February. This is up from January’s 53.1 - with output also increasing by 0.5% in the first quarter, up from 0.2% from the three months to December 2014 - and emphasises that British manufacturing is moving in an increasingly positive direction of growth.

Not only does this news demonstrate that Britain is establishing itself as a powerful manufacturing hub globally, but the results additionally signalled an increase in manufacturing employment for the twenty second successive month.

However, shortly after the publication of these figures the EEF suggested, in its 2015 Skills Manifesto, that new technologies and manufacturing processes would put an increased demand on the skills required by workers. Within the business community, we must take action to ensure we are investing in our future through attracting and training a workforce with the relevant skills to optimise these opportunities for future growth.

Whilst the growth highlighted by the Markit/CIPS Purchasing Manager’s Index is truly positive news for British manufacturing, we must ensure that we support this growth with the development of a skilled workforce to safeguard the future of the industry.

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’s editorial team is out and about at a wide variety of industry conferences, debates and factory tours month in, month out.

Let’s get a snapshot of the most interesting trips in March.

DUO began 2015 by investing £55,000 in a second closed loop recycling machine, as well as, launching a new and improved recycled packaging line, consisting of almost 100% recycled product.

Bags of success Packaging manufacturer DUO UK threw open its factory doors to let take a look around the site.

Two years ago the firm marked 25 years in business and celebrated by investing £1.1m in new kit, including a £750,000 coextrusion machine

T

ucked away in the bustling whirr of Manchester Piccadilly, specialist polythene manufacturer DUO UK, formerly Duo Plastics Ltd was launched in Gorton in 1988 with 17 employees, four machines and bucket loads of enthusiasm, dedication and a passion for packaging. Now, its turnover annually is £25m, it operates from two sites and employs 130 individuals combined.

The manufacturer boasts several accolades, the most recent of which was Manufacturing SME at the Business Masters 2015 in March, an award which Zoe Brimelow tells “we did not expect, we didn’t even write a speech”.

Two years ago the firm marked 25 years in business and celebrated by investing

24 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

£1.1m in new kit, including a £750,000 co-extrusion machine, aimed at increasing the firm’s manufacturing capacity by 40%, £60,000 in a new pallet truck and updated blending equipment, used in the blending of colours in materials.

The latest string to DUO UK’s bow is a partnership with Prestwich Arts College, which Brimelow is really excited about.

She explains, “We are looking to bridge the gap between school and employment.” DUO is continuing to cultivate its relationship with the school and hopes to add to the activities already completed.

Additionally, the company works with Manchester University PhD and master’s students, fielding genuine manufacturing problems to students who are then

challenged to provide a solution as part of their studies. The organisation is also providing an NVQ for employees on the shopfloor via the college.

DUO kicked-off the New Year by investing £55,000 in a second closed loop recycling machine and launched a new and improved recycled packaging line, consisting of almost 100% recycled product. The product has been developed on the back of new research conducted in Duo’s quality control lab which itself saw investment earlier this autumn.

In addition, Duo UK has been selected to be the first UK-based manufacturer to produce mailing bags using Green PE, a thermoplastic resin made entirely from sugarcane ethanol, a material developed

by Braskem.

OUT AND ABOUT

Hold the phone

I

Jonny Williamson answers the call and heads to Vertu’s Hampshire factory

f you’ve heard of the Hampshire town of Fleet it’s likely because of its quaint High street and market with a distinctly Victorian feel and aesthetic. So it’s probably not somewhere you’d expect to find the production and innovation centre for the world’s leading luxury mobile phone brand. As Hutch, the brand’s head of concept and design, shows me around the impressive site, he explains to me what “luxury” means to Vertu.

“Vertu is renowned for its combination of craftsmanship, performance and services,” Hutch says. “We want to transcend the toxic image of luxury as being merely gold plated and diamond-encrusted, with a product that is precision engineered across every level with absolutely no compromise in either

material, component or technology.”

This uncompromising nature permeates every level of Vertu’s operation, from its Hampshire HQ across its global network of 400 retail outlets, 66 boutiques stores and eight service centres. “To create the extraordinary,” Vertu’s three-strong range of mobile phones – Signature, Signature Touch and Aster – are all hand-made and handpackaged, with each one assembled by a single craftsman.

With testing as a rigorous part of its operation, Vertu’s

O Brother, where art thou?

T

he Brother factory, just outside the historic town of Wrexham, hasn’t always been a lean, sustainable, planetsaving force but it is now.

Ever since the factory was taken over by BIUK in 1985, it has had to fight for its survival against price-dumping, low-cost economies and a host of other third party competitors.

Originally making microwave ovens and typewriters, the 140-staff members now work on printer cartridges and franking

machines. The factory is high-tech and modern with large amounts of automation visible all over the factory floor.

But it’s the sustainability that really makes this factory stand out. Brother became so good at it, it had to open another site in Slovakia to cope with the amount, and it’s now gone from a drain on resources to a moneymaking operation vital to the future of the UK green credentials it needs to tender for contracts in public sector. Brother supplies printers to 85,000 GP surgeries in the UK alone.

The factory works closely with Japan HQ to market future recyclables and quality assurance manager Dave Lawrence was adamant the environmental policies were the way of the future: “We’ve integrated

The models are all hand-made, with each one assembled by a single craftsman.

six month training programme culminates in each technician having to assemble 20 models in a row with zero fails in order to qualify. The materials the company uses on a daily basis – such as platinum, titanium, exotic hides and sapphire crystal – require a tremendous amount of skill to work with and polish to the necessary level of finish, something Hutch notes will sustain the brand’s handmade ethos moving forward, prohibiting introducing automation.

Focusing on making small volumes right, rather than mass volumes fast, the centre also refurbishes models for clients, and offer engraving, monogramming, a made-to-order service and a bespoke Atelier option, taking made-to-order commissions to the next level with a truly unique, one-of-a-kind product.

Andrew Putwain travels to the green, Welsh countryside to see how Brother (BIUK) is changing the game on sustainability. sustainability into management practices. It doesn’t work as a bolt on.”

Together with its engrained lean culture the factory is more profitable now compared to previous years; and the green goals have lead to a clean, safe and airy factory with natural light and an almost nonexistent staff turnover. Though the last one might be due to a nine-day fortnight, which means during slower periods there’s no reason to go through a cycle of hiring/firing and everyone’s jobs are safe.

Brother truly is looking ahead in every way.

If you would like to visit your factory or business, let us know and email the editor at c.bentley@hennikgroup.com April 2015 | Issue 3 | Volume 18 | www.themanufacturer.com 25

Tracking your top reads on www.themanufacturer.com last month

Best of Online

http://www.themanufacturer.com

Bullet-proofing Bloodhound

A

t 1,000mph, BLOODHOUND SSC’s solid aluminium wheels will be spinning at 10,200 rpm – that’s rotating at 170 times per second – generating a staggering 50,000 radial g at

the rim.

While the wheels have been forged using a 3,600 tonne hot press and a 20,000 cold press to ensure the metals internal grain structure radiates out like the spokes of a wheel, they could still fail if they hit stone hidden beneath the desert surface.

If a piece of the wheel were to fly off, or indeed a stone lying just under the surface of the desert were to flick up, they could penetrate the incredibly strong carbon composite cockpit.

To combat this, Morgan Advanced Materials has developed a lightweight composite ballistic panel, containing millions of woven glass fibres to soak up the energy of projectiles that hit them. The panels have been fitted to both sides of the carbon fibre cockpit to protect driver, Andy Green.

How do the team know they are up to the job? Morgan Advanced Materials fired a projectile at them with 29 KJ of energy, the equivalent of a 2000 mph cricket ball! Watch the test video here bit.ly/SSCBulletProof

Popular blog contributions last month included: Lifting the barriers to health and safety Products that look alike don’t always perform alike – and where health and safety is concerned performance can be a matter of life and death, declares James Smith, director of fixed polymer safety barriers inventor and manufacturer, A-SAFE. bit.ly/HandSBarriers

Manufacturers hold the key to the future success of BIM Manufacturers not only underpin the BIM model but will prove a crucial factor driving it forward argues, James Smith, product manager BIM for Majenta Solutions. bit.ly/BIMSuccess

How manufacturers can make Industry 4.0 work for them Simon Culshaw, head of manufacturing at Atos UK & Ireland, talks about a revolution and why manufacturers urgently need to find ways to optimise their working processes. bit.ly/IndustryWork

26 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

Top Tweets

What did the George Osb Twittersphere have to sa ourne’s 2015 y pre-election about budget?

MANUFACTURING, THE NUMBERS

looks at some of the more interesting numbers in the manufacturing news from the past month.

The rate the wheels will be spinning when the BLOODHOUND SSC reaches 1,000 mph. That’s 170 times per second. bit.ly/SSCBulletProof

How much of today’s available data was created in the past two years. bit.ly/EEF2015

The number of medium sized businesses now receiving UKTI support to break into new export markets. bit.ly/UKTImedium

The number of people who completed an apprenticeship in the UK’s food and drink manufacturing sector in 2014. bit.ly/FDApprentice

Cost of the new National Automotive Innovation Centre to be opened at the University of Warwick. bit.ly/NAICentre

April 2015 | Issue 3 | Volume 18 | www.themanufacturer.com 27

Election fever

As the general election looms do the major parties recognise the worth of manufacturing in rebalancing the economy?

Victoria Fitzgerald lays out the facts.

The Conservative Party Under the Conservative coalition we have already seen progress on the emphasis of core STEM subjects, stepped up support for apprenticeships, a turn towards exports, growth in the manufacturing sector and a return to pre-recession levels of prosperity.

Should the Conservatives come to power, David Cameron has identified party priorities including: the deficit, jobs, taxes and education all of which have a direct influence on manufacturing. The party aims to eradicate the deficit by 2018 and secure an overall budget surplus by 2019-20, achieved by spending cuts, not raising taxes, as well as, an income tax cut for 30 million people by 2020. It will hold a referendum on Britain’s EU membership by 2017; promises to save firms a further £10 billion in regulatory costs; deliver 3m apprenticeships and open more University Technical Colleges;

expand start-up loans, and support the next stage of finance with the Help to Grow programme targeting SMEs.

“Any employer that wants to be involved… should get in contact so we can make sure the standards work for all.”

Matthew Hancock spoke to on a range of issues that the Conservatives believe will bolster manufacturing including energy intensive industries, apprenticeships, exports, infrastructure and Europe. He said, “We want to see renewable energy that’s lower cost and cost competitive leading to a lower burden.”

“We need to strengthen UKTI further, exporting has been tough to the Eurozone, repeated recession over the past few years, but there’s big and exciting new markets on the horizon. We maintain our goal of a trillion pounds worth of exports by 2020, half of exports from the manufacturing sector.

In regards to apprenticeships, “I personally brought in Trailblazer apprenticeships”, which aims to provide young people with the skills employers want by letting employers design their apprenticeships. He adds,

“Infrastructure needs continued improvement. We’ve seen £45bn investment in energy in the last five years, we need a similar amount over the next five years.

“Our aim is to make the whole of Europe work better and renegotiate our relationship so we can then have a Europe that works better for everybody.”

The Liberal Democrats Closely associated with a host of broken promises, including campaigning against the “Tory VAT Bombshell” to later vote to increase VAT to 20%, as with a well as promising and failing to provide statement, the Lib Dems are running with a “the stable, centre-ground approach”. The party maintains having plugged funds into manufacturing with £5.5bn invested in science and manufacturing, as well as, the creation of 1.8 million apprenticeships.

In their pre-manifesto the Lib Dems said they would “invest to make the UK a world leader in low carbon cars, energy efficiency and hi-tech manufacturing, and continue the Regional Growth Fund to back growing businesses.”

The party has invested in a number of green ventures including £2,273m in The Pen-Y-Cymoedd onshore wind

28 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

farm in South Wales, which the party estimates will create up to 4,124 jobs.

However, should the party prevail it promises an extra £1 an hour for the lowest paid apprentices; the creation of a million more jobs.

The Lib Dems are also backing small businesses with Nick Clegg calling them “the lifeblood of our economy – the engine that helps drive” UK growth, and is supporting the British Business Bank. It promises to extend the Funding for Lending Scheme to reduce the cost of lending to SMEs, plans to build on the success of the Regional Growth Fund; and aims to double the number of employers with Apprentices in the next Parliament.

2015 Election

HOT TOPIC

The Labour Party The Labour party Intends to push for a reform of the European Union; enforce a 5% pay cut for every government minister; guarantee a job for under 25s unemployed for over a year and adults unemployed for more than two years; ensure as many young people to start an apprenticeship as currently go to university by 2025, create a million new high technology green jobs by 2025; and ban “exploitative” zero hour contracts.

Iain Wright MP, Labour’s Shadow Minister for Industry, told : “Our membership of the EU means access to product markets in growing economies…. Labour will secure Britain’s place in a reformed EU,

Labour will implement a long-term innovation strategy in science and research to help create new products and improve the UK’s record of underinvestment in Research & Development Iain wright, Shadow Minister for Industry

and support businesses to export through better access to finance, improving skills and supported access to markets.

“We will cut and freeze business rates for small business properties, commit to the most competitive Corporation Tax regime in the G7. We will strengthen Local Enterprise Partnerships, and devolve £30 bn of funding to city and county regions.

“We will deliver… gold standard vocational qualifications at 18 and new technical degrees. We will give employers more control over the funding and design of apprenticeships.

“To help firms being held back by rising utility costs, Labour will freeze energy bills until 2017, saving 2.4 million businesses £1.5bn in total. We will make Britain a world leader in low carbon technology and create one million new green jobs by setting a legal target to decarbonise our electricity sector by 2030.

“Labour will implement a long-term innovation strategy in science and research to help create new products and improve the UK’s record of underinvestment in Research & Development, and explore ways to encourage further collaboration between universities and businesses.”

The Green Party Should the Green Party defy the odds and come to power its manifesto promises to end austerity; create a new wealth tax on the top 1%; close tax loopholes; increase the minimum wage to reach a living wage of £10 an hour by 2020; phase out fossilfuel based energy generation and nuclear power; and invest in a public programme of renewable generation, flood defences and building insulation.

The party told it didn’t “have the capacity to respond” to our “questions at the moment”, which was disappointing considering Green Party leader Natalie Bennett’s bungle on LBC radio earlier this year.

The Greens intend to raise the school starting age to six if parents want it; scrap the National Curriculum; allow 16 and 17-year-olds to vote in all UK elections; scrap university tuition fees; organise a referendum on Britain’s EU membership; make people earning more than £100,000 a year pay 50% income tax; introduce a wealth tax of 1% to 2% on people worth £3m or more; renationalise the railways and energy companies; and Commit Britain to a “zero carbon” future.

April 2015 | Issue 3 | Volume 18 | www.themanufacturer.com 29

EEF National Conference 2015

HOT TOPIC

Leader of the Opposition, Ed Miliband speaking at the EEF National Conference 2015

EEF National Conference 2015 EEF’s fourth annual conference brought together high-profile keynote speakers from the nation’s political and manufacturing landscape to debate the great British manufacturing revival.

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ompared by BBC broadcaster Steph McGovern, herself a former engineer, EEF’s chief executive Terry Scuoler kicked off proceedings by charting how Britain can become a leading player in the fourth industrial revolution.

Scuoler called on the next government to support a productive and flexible workplace; support science and applied research bases; commit to improving the UK’s infrastructure (both logistical and technological); incentivise innovation and entrepreneurship, and provide secure and competitive sources of energy.

He also urged delegates to unite voices to win the economic argument for staying in the EU should a referendum be called following the election.

Leader of the Opposition, Ed Miliband, and Matthew Hancock MP, Minister for Business, Enterprise and Skills, both spoke about the skills agenda, the UK’s EU membership and other key issues facing the manufacturing community.

Miliband thanked delegates, referring to them as the “backbone of Britain”, noting that they had continued to “invent, make and sell successfully during one of the most difficult economic periods in recent times”.

30 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

Describing a potential British exit from the EU as “detrimental”, he stated that “for young people, families and business, the EU represents the best future for Britain”.

Hancock highlighted that a successive Conservative term would result in “taxes being kept low, but we expect them to

The day’s first panel debate – The Best of British Manufacturing – included representatives from Williams F1, Toyota UK and PolyPhotonix be paid in full; we will keep Whitehall off your back, but we expect your suppliers to be paid on time”.

The day’s first panel debate – The Best of British Manufacturing – included representatives from Williams F1, Toyota UK and PolyPhotonix.

McGovern and audience members questioned the panel on how they are achieving success and the factors behind their accomplishments.

CEO of PolyPhotonix, Richard Kirk discussed the importance of innovation and the opportunity it represents for UK industry, concluding: “The Government can only do so much, at some point CEOs and MDs have to stand up and apply for the funding available.”

Deputy MD of Toyota UK, Tony Walker explored continuous improvement. He emphasised that the generation of ideas should be from the bottom up, and that “providing every employee across all levels with a voice and listening to it”, was pivotal.

The day’s second debate – Sustaining the Renaissance: 20 Years On – looked at the opportunities for manufacturing over the next 20 years and what businesses need to do today be ready.

BAE Systems’ director of strategic technology, Andy Wright argued that big data would become increasingly important, noting that “if we are too complacent, it will hit and we won’t be ready for it”.

Brian Holliday, MD of Siemens’ Digital Factory, agreed, adding that “given the proliferation of big data, technology is going to be key in the future, with Industry 4.0, autonomous manufacturing and PLM becoming ever more integral.”

e.o n R e p o r t

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s the general election looms, manufacturers are looking for drastic changes in energy policy and regulation to help improve overall competitiveness in the sector.

Energy costs are higher than ever and with sustainability and green targets such as ESOS forcing their way into the corporate agenda,

it is now more important than ever for manufacturers to take back control of their energy usage. Over the next few pages, teams up with major energy supplier, E.ON, to see how the company is helping the sector manage its energy costs and how it is helping businesses stay ahead of the pack.

e . o n E n er g y F ea t u re

A powerful voice What role can an energy supplier play in voicing the concerns of industry towards Government energy regulation?

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bout two years ago, energy company E.ON embarked on a programme to get closer to customers across its business. According to E.ON’s Director of Corporates, David Topping, the company revised its vision to increase its customer focus and examine exactly what each of its customer segments wanted from their supplier.

Topping said when they started to look in depth at their larger, more energy intensive customers, it became apparent that one key requirement was to have enough knowledge to navigate the energy world and its many legislative requirements.

“We recognised that certainly with our larger customers we needed to get closer to them and we needed to know

E.ON Energy Feature

more about what they wanted from their energy supplier,” Topping says. “We set about a series of large customer forums, bringing a group of customers together on a regular basis to give them information and updates to help them navigate the increasingly complex energy world – be that new technologies, regulatory changes or movements in the wholesale markets.”

These meetings gave E.ON the chance to update its customers on regulatory changes such as Electricity Market Reform (EMR) and the Energy Savings Opportunities Scheme (ESOS), and what to expect when these were enforced – for example, how to efficiently manage the energy costs associated with them, such as avoiding peak cost periods. They also gave their customers updates on factors influencing the energy commodity market.

“On the back of that we ended up talking in detail about regulation and its potential impact,” Topping says.

“A discussion started about how large organisations could input in to the thinking of the regulator at an early stage. What was interesting was that these large nationwide players

It was extremely beneficial to have the opportunity to go to Ofgem and let ourselves be heard Andrew Scrivener Ardagh Glass

Getting the right contract, meeting carbon targets, monitoring consumption…

We understand that you need more from us than just energy.

With E.ON, you’ll benefit from a strong, long-term relationship with someone who really understands your business. And with our expert knowledge and experience, we can help you monitor, analyse and control your energy use.

Our products and services are tailored around our customers, so whatever your business needs, your dedicated Account Manager will help you find the right solution.

Find out more at eonenergy.com/themanufacturer Or call 0330 400 1050 We’re here Mon–Thurs 8:30am–5pm, Fri 8:30am–4pm.

Helping our customers.

We’re on it.

E.ON UK plc. Registered Office: Westwood Way Westwood Business Park Coventry CV4 8LG Registered in England and Wales No. 2366970

e . o n E n er g y F ea t u re

had strong links into Government and their relevant business departments but they felt they needed help in communicating with parts of Whitehall outside their remit, such as the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) or the energy regulator, Ofgem.”

Topping said it became apparent that E.ON’s relationship with bodies such as Ofgem and DECC gave them a significant opportunity, to help these large organisations - both manufacturers and nonmanufacturers – to be heard. They engaged with Ofgem and both agreed that it would be a very worthwhile exercise.

“A lot of energy regulation impacts not only us as a supplier, but also has a significant impact on our customers and their operations– production schedules and peak charging, wholesale market restrictions and mandatory energy efficiency improvements to name but a few. We felt that we could help our customers’ voices be heard and therefore asked if they would like to join us in a meeting with Ofgem.

One of the customers they asked was Andrew Scrivener, Procurement Manager at Ardagh Group UK. Ardagh is one of the UK and the world’s largest glass and metal packaging producers, and at global level the company produces more than 35 billion food and drink containers per year. The company is a major user of energy alongside other companies in the glass industry and companies in industries such as steel, cement and paper.

E.ON Energy Feature

Talking point What did some of the UK’s more energy-intensive manufacturers have to say when they sat down with and E.ON?

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he pending general election is beginning to weigh heavily on the minds of the country’s manufacturers. While many are calling for the next elected government – regardless of the colour of its ties – to maintain the momentum and focus towards manufacturing seen in recent years, others are anxiously waiting for some more pertinent, solid, industry-focused policy.

These concerns and challenges were laid out in detail recently when energy supplier E.ON teamed up with to host an exclusive round table event with some of the country’s most renowned, energy-intensive manufacturers.

So when E.ON invited Ardagh Group to attend an open discussion with Ofgem, Mr Scrivener welcomed the opportunity.

“The meeting was mainly focused around another phase of the EU Regulation on wholesale Energy Market Integrity & Transparency (REMIT) and the uncertainty about the legislation surrounding it,” Scrivener says. “It was extremely beneficial to have the opportunity to meet with Ofgem and

let ourselves be heard.” He adds “It’s important to get our position across and start a dialogue with the key decision makers.

“Unless you represent a trade body it can be difficult to be heard but as a collective group of ten or fifteen companies, supported by E.ON as a provider with a major customer base, then I think that starts a really interesting discussion. We need to speak as an

E.ON’s B2B Director, Anthony Ainsworth, was joined

by Director of Corporates, David Topping. Also attending the dinner were energy and procurement managers from major companies including Ardagh Glass, Siemens, Rexam, Caparo, Sheffield Forgemasters, E2V Technologies and Vaillant Group.

Besides the key topic of engaging with Government departments such as Ofgem (see main article), other talking points from the evening included; the importance of retaining a level playing field for UK manufacturers when it comes to energy policy in comparison with other European countries; options to reduce energy costs and the need for funding/ incentives to take these steps; the impact of third party costs on businesses; the customer/distributor relationship and the regulation that applies to these businesses; approaches to energy purchasing, and the level of advice available.

Allan Harley, Health, Safety and Environment Manager at heating and ventilation manufacturer Vaillant Industries, was quick to voice his concern surrounding the effect UK energy taxes had on the overall competiveness of UK manufacturing.

“This country, in terms of workforce and management, is as competitive as any,” he said.

“But if you’re actually under artificial penalties, which we are, then we suffer because this country obeys the rules.

“The energy you use is taxed further than just VAT. This means the more you make the more successful you are, but also the more additional tax burden you’ve got. That is then passed on to the bottom line and to the prices the customer pays. It makes you less competitive with other European countries that do not have these penalties. That’s unfair and it’s not a level playing field. Either have a standard EU charge - if you want to work on a 20-20 vision to reduce the energy you use, then fine - but make it level.”

This notion of being penalised carried the conversation towards the ominous topic of Triad periods. While some companies present were more complacent than others surrounding the difficult-topredict peak charge periods, others expressed their

industry, and I feel as though we made a great start with this approach for a meeting.”

Topping agreed, saying he felt positive that the meeting was warmly received by all parties. Bringing customers in to these forums can help the regulator understand first-hand the challenges large policy decisions pose for customers, and can help them shape and introduce regulation as effectively as possible – creating a win

concern surrounding the massive cost implications which could occur if one of these periods was not managed properly.

John Wood, Director of Group Corporate Services at Caparo said while it was possible to see the logic of Triads in attempting to “smooth out usage”, it was not proactive in assisting the productivity of UK manufacturing.

“Switching stuff off in-house, guessing when it might be a Triad - you would never come up with a scheme like that if you wanted to make UK manufacturing as productive as possible, would you?” Wood emphasised.

“It’s an uncertain scheme. What should be happening if they’re trying to help manufacturing is making sure that we’ve got enough capacity in the system to be able to cope with domestic demand. Most of this happens when you get a surge in domestic demand, and it’s another penalty on manufacturing.”

E.ON’s Director of Corporates, David Topping reassured attendees that the right supplier could, in fact, be a major advantage in forecasting when these Triad periods could occur, potentially saving UK businesses hundreds of thousands of pounds per year. But he also emphasised that Triad alerts could never be guaranteed to be 100% accurate (http://bit. ly/PeakPeriods).

“Forecasting the Triads is not easy,” he said.

“They’re confirmed retrospectively and regulatory rules mean there must be 10 days separating each Triad.

“In the medium term there are opportunities for businesses to focus on more sustainable opportunities to shift load away from more expensive peak times into cheaper off-peak periods.”

By night’s end it was apparent that not all energy issues could be resolved with one brush stroke.

Energy demands differ from business to business and with energy prices for UK manufacturers not showing any sign of dipping anytime soon (not in the least, towards a more equal European benchmark), it will fall on manufacturing businesses to take more proactive steps to make sure the energy they are purchasing is working for them in the most efficient, cost effective way possible.

There’s a very clear need for discussion and we can provide a direct line into the consumer world David Topping, E.ON

for the regulator, for the customer and for the supplier. “I believe Ofgem found it really beneficial to talk directly to some of the larger companies that their actions and thinking would be impacting,” he says. “I certainly felt they viewed this as a favourable step.

“I think when there’s a very clear need for discussion and we can provide a direct line into the consumer world, that’s a really good position to be in.”

E.ON Energy Feature

e . o n E n er g y F ea t u re

One on one talks with John Conway, Key Account Manager at E.ON, about building the right relationships with manufacturers of all shapes and sizes, and how almost 40 years of experience in the energy industry can help achieve this. : When building a relationship with manufacturers, what do you bring to the table?

In a nutshell it’s about helping customers and easing their workload by sharing my knowledge.

An ideal supplier is one who understands and explains this complex industry in simple terms, so that the customer can understand it to a similar degree that they understand their own industry. If I can achieve that goal it makes renewing and winning business an easier task. : What is the key point you try to achieve when building trust in a new customer relationship?

I believe we should always seek to deliver solutions that help customers, because without them we wouldn’t have a business. Dedicated contacts and account management are vital. Adding value and contributing experience and best practice costs me nothing but

My job is challenging, but never boring

E.ON Energy Feature

Q&A

time – which for me is an investment.

My customers are always going to test the market and price is important to them, but strong relationships give them more reasons to remain with us in the long-term. : How do you achieve this?

It’s not just about what I can offer I’m fortunate to have the backing of a powerful team of energy specialists and with their dedication my customers can get on with their business, safe in the knowledge their energy is taken care of by experts. For example, our project engineers regularly help with complex infrastructure work and advice on capacity levels, and I also have support from the independent market experts at E.ON Portfolio Solution (EPS). It’s important to look for ways to differentiate our services because all electricity is effectively the same, regardless of who supplies it. : What are the key considerations your clients should think about when managing their energy?

Price transparency is vital to help customers understand and analyse offers on a like for like basis because a final electricity billing price is made up of up to an incredible 22 separate elements and that’s before VAT. Breaking the price down and identifying each element helps me to simplify the offer.

It’s true that wholesale energy costs have reduced in recent years but they’re becoming a smaller part of the final billed price – currently about 55%. Government levies to fund low

carbon generation and transportation are rising faster than inflation - some by 15-20% a year. So energy efficiency is very important - using no more energy than necessary helps keeps costs under control.

We won’t win every tender but by offering an open and transparent package we hope we can become a trusted supplier where the door is always open for the future. If we don’t, we win short term contracts with no hope of customer loyalty. : What is the most rewarding part of your job?

My job is challenging, but never boring.

For me it’s the variety and technical aspects of the whole package that provide job satisfaction. The buzz I get out of helping customers manage their costs is priceless.

I also really love doing factory tours, it’s really interesting and helps me understand the customer’s business a little more; I’ll never be an expert on every industry but it gives me an insight I’d never get from a website alone. It helps me understand what’s important to them, how they use energy and helps explore how they could use less.

It also provides an opportunity for the customer to relax in their ‘comfort zone’ discussing their ‘specialist subject’ – their own business.

Find out more at eonenergy.com/ themanufacturer or call us on 0330 400 1050.

e . o n E n er g y F ea t u re

The power to change Energy intensive businesses in the UK are experiencing a greater pace of regulatory change than ever before, coming from a variety of sources including Ofgem, the EU and UK Government. David Topping, E.ON’s Director of Corporates, explores some of the drivers behind these initiatives and explains how E.ON is helping its customers navigate the changes.

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e’re often told by our large business customers that the current pace of regulatory change is causing a real burden – being both confusing and time consuming to manage. Many new customer and supplier obligations are being introduced and industry regulation could have a direct impact on your dayto-day operations.

However, there are some benefits for consumers. Some of the changes could alter the way you interact with your supplier or how you view your energy, for example advancements in technology like Smart or advanced meters are driving some significant changes across the industry as the volume and quality of data increases.

Whilst there are many individual changes, they share some common themes: Transparency: New obligations are being discussed which will capture

both supplier and customer activity and propose to increase transparency in the market through mandatory routine reporting of information on supply, purchases and contracts for some very high-consuming customers. An example is REMIT (EU Regulation on wholesale Energy Market Integrity and Transparency) which creates a framework for identifying and penalising market abuse across Europe giving consumers, industry and other participants confidence that wholesale energy prices are open, fair and competitive; the foundations of an effectively functioning energy market.

Efficiency: There’s increased focus on efficiency and CO2 emission reductions across the EU – the focus isn’t just on us as an energy supplier, but also on customers. The efficiency drive will introduce new obligations on customers and suppliers to disclose information about energy usage, and for some customers, new requirements

such as the Energy Savings Opportunities Scheme (ESOS) which requires certain businesses to carry out energy audits and consider practical efficiency recommendations.

Demand side response: With the broad rollout of Smart meters and automated meter readings (AMR), UK consumers will have more information than ever about how and when they use energy. Many of the changes consider how that information can be used by customers – large corporations and small businesses alike – to change their consumption patterns and potentially benefit through reduced energy charges and third party costs, while helping the networks ensure supply meets demand.

At E.ON we’re committed to helping our customers understand and manage the impact of these changes on their business.

Regulatory changes are issued for consultation before a decision is reached and it’s important that we reflect in our responses not only the impact on us, but also our customers In 2014 we visited Ofgem with some of our customers so that Ofgem could hear directly from them what increased regulation means for their business We let our customers know when a regulatory initiative means that the way we bill or service their account or agree their next contract will change Our dedicated account managers work with our customers to make sure they fully understand what’s changing and why We’ve introduced new propositions, such as our Energy Toolkit, to help customers monitor their energy consumption and use that information to create energy plans We offer end to end solutions to help our customers comply with new regulation – for example for ESOS, we can help from initial assessment through to recommending efficiency savings and installing new equipment. ESOS assessments are provided

by Matrix, our energy efficiency specialist company, who are working in partnership with the Carbon Trust. A site survey could identify opportunities that could reduce energy consumption, potentially creating significant savings for the business.

Find out more at eonenergy.com/ themanufacturer or call us on 0330 400 1050.

Thought Leadership E.ON Energy Feature

e . o n E n er g y F ea t u re

A case for management With energy costs increasing and more regulation to comply with than ever before, energy intensive businesses are looking for new solutions to help them manage their energy use. Mark Daniels, E.ON’s Head of Corporates Marketing & Development, tells us all about their new energy management solution.

Case Study: Wabtec UK Group A global company supplying the world’s leading manufacturers in the railway and industrial engineering market; Headquarters in Burton on Trent with 10 sites operating in the UK and a worldwide infrastructure; Approximately 2,786 staff in the UK Wabtec UK Group has been using the Energy Toolkit since November 2014.

They previously used electronic billing data to monitor consumption which relied on manually created reports which took up precious time and restricted understanding of energy use.

With the new Toolkit all reports now run automatically, using pre-set templates, and bespoke reports can also be tailored to their needs.

Kiro Tamer, Wabtec UK Group Environmental & Sustainability Engineer, says: “The Toolkit enables us to review historic energy usage and download reports at a touch of button, meaning detailed data can be reviewed to assess the effectiveness of our energy usage and agreements, ensuring that we only use and pay for what we need, such as agreed electrical capacities etc. At Wabtec UK we are committed to using technologies such as the Energy Toolkit to help us improve efficiency and set precise goals for the future.”

E.ON Energy Feature

Case Study

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ne of the concerns we regularly hear from customers is that they need help managing their energy use. Businesses are under increasing pressure to reduce energy costs and take greater control, from both a cost efficiency and environmental compliance perspective. The ability to demonstrate responsibility within the Corporate community is becoming ever greater, driven by regulatory programmes such as the Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC) and the Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (ESOS), and there is potential for some businesses to make significant cost savings by changing energy consumption patterns to use less in peak cost periods.

The key to energy management is first to understand where and when your business is using energy. This can identify areas where consumption could be reduced and where control measures can be applied. Quick and easy access to information is fundamental. Couple this with useful analytical tools and you have a powerful resource to drive more effective energy management.

In 2014 we introduced our Energy Toolkit to provide our customers with this resource. It’s a web based service with a variety of useful features and tools to enable users to monitor, analyse and control their energy use.

As well as an in-depth reporting function, the Toolkit also contains a configurable dashboard and email alert service. Whilst reporting can identify where and when energy is

being used, the dashboard can help engage staff in a company-wide energy reduction plan - presenting information in simple graphs that can be shown on a computer screen or TV monitor for public display. The ‘buy in’ and engagement of staff can go a long way towards the achievement of energy management goals, which is why the presentation of information that can be easily understood by staff members at all levels is an important factor.

The dashboard can also be viewed on smart phones and tablet devices, enabling users to keep up to date with energy usage on the go. Email alerts can be set to let users know when energy use moves outside of usual boundaries, which can really help in managing a reduction plan and keeping it on track.

We encourage all our Energy Toolkit users to share their efficiency plans and targets with us so that we can work with them to help them achieve their goals.

To find out more about E.ON’s Energy Toolkit visit eonenergy.com/ themanufacturer or call us on 0330 400 1050.

Towards a UK National Strategy in Through-life Engineering Services (TES) Wednesday 13th May 2015 Prince Philip House Royal Academy of Engineering, London

The EPSRC Centre for Innovative Manufacturing in Through-life Engineering Services is holding a UK National Strategy Development Day at the Prince Philip House, Royal Academy of Engineering in London on May 13th 2015.

Aim of the Day The aim of the day is to bring together the leading thinkers and practitioners in the subject area to create a positioning paper to identify key elements required in the development of a UK National Strategy.

Structure of the Day The day will take the form of a closely facilitated and structured workshop with leading experts and industrialists debating and deciding the importance of key issues, enabling technologies and standards and skills development to guide strategy in these key areas.

Hosted By:

Core Partners:

The EPSRC TES Centre: The National EPSRC Centre for Innovative Manufacturing in Through-life Engineering Services (TES) provides world-class capability to enable industry to deliver high value products with outstanding availability, predictability and reliability with optimum life cycle cost.

The EPSRC Centre vision is to provide thought leadership in through-life engineering services and be the first choice for UK manufacturing companies as a source of technological solutions, R and D capability, knowledge, skill and advice.

Who should attend?

Key business, government and academic leaders with responsibility for and/or deep interest in sustaining the UK’s standing in this area.

To register?

Attendance is by invitation and numbers are limited. If you wish to attend please register on our website at: http://www.through-life-engineeringservices.org/index.php/partners-and-work-withus/tes-uk-national-strategy-event where further information on TES and the Centre can be found and the Expression of Interest form can be downloaded. For general enquiries contact Ellie at: Email: Eleanor.Collins@cranfield.ac.uk Tel: +44 (0) 1234 750111 x4031

The Manufacturer MX Awards 2015 launch

Business Minister Matthew Hancock speaking at the TMMX launch event

The official launch of The Manufacturer MX Awards 2015 The Manufacturer MX Awards 2015 were officially launched on a crisp March afternoon at the House of Commons.

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lmost 200 senior business leaders and Business Minister Matthew Hancock turned out for The Manufacturer MX Awards 2015 launch.

Sponsored by Margot James MP, attendees sampled canapés and networked in the grandiose environs of the Terrace Pavilion overlooking the tenacious flow of the river Thames.

The uniqueness of this year’s event was to celebrate the joining of two formidable forces in manufacturing. The Manufacturer and the Institution of Mechanical

32 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

Engineers have combined their strengths to form an exclusive benchmark competition that recognises excellence and provides companies taking part with free, targeted business advice.

With a combined heritage spanning four decades, the new awards will continue to provide manufacturers large and small with free feedback from top experts, based on a self-assessment audit as well as celebrating the outstanding achievements of this hugely important UK industry.

Institution of Mechanical Engineers’ president group captain Mark Hunt OBE said: “We are delighted to be able to combine forces with The Manufacturer.

Manufacturing is at the heart of a healthy UK economy and these awards will not only recognise outstanding achievements in this sector, but will also help drive improvements in business practices of all the companies involved.

Event review

“Taking part gives companies the opportunity to receive valuable advice, free of charge, from world class experts and in a time of fierce competition in business, the feedback provided could make the difference between a company’s success and failure.”

UK manufacturing was well represented at the launch with internationally-recognised brands, the likes of Airbus, Rolls-Royce, BAE Systems, Caparo, JCB, Jaguar Land Rover and Tata Steel; that were joined by leading industry players including MBDA, Xtrac, The Royal Mint, Coty Manufacturing UK and many more.

Speaking at the event, Business Minister Matthew Hancock described the awards as being “all about recognising what’s great about UK manufacturing, and raising its profile and celebrating successes.”

Margot James MP commented: “Too many fascinating developments and inventions go unsung in Britain and that’s where I think this fantastic new award is so important.”

TMMX categories include Sustainable Manufacturing; Partnership with Education; Logistics & Supply Chain; Leadership & Strategy; World Class Manufacturing, and Customer Focus.

Last year’s overall winner, Peter Digby, Managing Director of Xtrac commented at the launch: “I would encourage all of you to apply for these awards. For us, beating the likes of Rolls-Royce, BAE and Babcock was a fantastic achievement and is a clear acknowledgement of the whole teams’ hard work and dedication.”

Nick Hussey, CEO of The Manufacturer said: “There are too many awards that lack gravitas and rigour and do nothing to help UK manufacturing. By combining with the Institution today we have established the ultimate benchmark for all UK manufacturers to aspire to.

“By uniting our strength and experience, we are raising the bar for all manufacturers in the UK, offering them the platform and confidence to stand tall on the international stage.”

Entries for this year’s awards are now open. For more information on nominating your business in 2015, visit: www.themanufacturer.com/ awards

March 2015 | Issue 2 | Volume 18 | www.themanufacturer.com 33

UK Spaceport

SPecial feature

A giant leap towards reality Plans for Britain to become the home of Europe’s first spaceport have moved one step closer with confirmed widespread support for the Government’s proposal.

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becoming a European focal point for the pioneers of commercial spaceflights and scientific research.

The next step is for the Department for Transport to develop a detailed technical specification of spaceport requirements, prior to inviting proposals, due to be published later this year. The ultimate aim is to have the UK-based commercial space flight hub operational by 2018.

he outcome of a 3-month consultation with a variety of interested parties has been published, leading the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to narrow its shortlist of potential locations for the spaceport.

Last year, the Government launched its space innovation and growth strategy 2014 to 2030, which set out the economic advantages of the UK

The strategy’s recommendations included: Develop the high-value priority markets.

Promote enterprise and investment through regulation.

Influence Europe.

Stornoway (Scotland)

RAF Lossiemouth (Scotland) RAF Leuchars (Scotland)

Campbeltown (Scotland) Glasgow Prestwick (Scotland) Llanbedr (Wales)

Newquay (England)

34

Support growth in the UK Space sector.

RAF Kinloss (Scotland)

Stimulate a vibrant regional Space SME sector.

Possible sites for the Spaceport Sites ruled out for operational reasons, given their role in Defence

Other locations can still be submitted to the CAAA if operators believe they can fulfil the requirements: An existing runway which is, or capable of being extended to, over 3,000 metres in length.

The ability to accommodate dedicated segregate airspace to manage flights safely.

A reasonable distance from densely populated areas in order to minimise impact on the uninvolved general public.

What’s your relationship with ERP?

Engaged Still Looking

It’s Inspiring In a Relationship It’s Complicated

ERP should inspire your business, not complicate it.

Update your status. Epicor ERP is built to bring out the best in you and your business. www.epicor.com/uk/compatibility

Questions? Contact us at: Phone 01344 468 468 E-mail ukmarketing@epicor.com Copyright © 2014. Epicor Software Corporation. Epicor, the Epicor logo, and Business Inspired are registered trademarks of Epicor Software Corporation.

85 Geneva International Motor Show th

F

rom jaw-dropping concepts to productionready supercars, stands featured offerings produced by global automotive giants to cottage producers, and everyone in-between.

Though Porsche’s Cayman GT4; Ferrari’s 488 GTB; Audi’s new R8, Koenigsegg’s hybrid Regera, and Lambroghini’s Aventador SV all turned heads, it was the British contingent which stole the limelight thanks to a successful fusion of forward-thinking with respect for the past.

36 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

Bentley EXP 10 Speed 6 Bentley’s surprisingly small sports car concept combines striking automotive design, highly skilled handcrafting, the finest materials and advanced performance technology.

After 11 days, 900 vehicles – including 130 premiers and concept cars, 11,300 media representatives and more than 680,000 attendees, the 85th Geneva International Motor Show 2015 drew to a close on March 15.

85th Geneva International Motor Show

Special Feature

Aston Martin Vulcan An 800 hp, 7.0 litre V12 engine (developed

by Aston Martin Racing), all-carbon fibre trackonly supercar which draws extensively on the luxury brand’s rich GT motorsport experience, flair for design and engineering prowess.

McLaren 675LT (long tail)

Morgan Aero8 The original model was launched at Geneva back in 2000, and this year the independent, family-owned carmaker’s Aero8 has a stiffer, allaluminium chassis and revels in its hand sculpted body.

A roadlegal more aerodynamic, powerful and lighter version of the 650S, the limited production 675LT is capable of 0-60 in less than three seconds and tops out at 205mph.

Lotus Evora 400 It’s fastest and most power production model to date, Lotus’ supercharged, midmounted 3.5 litre V6 engine propels the aluminium chassis with 400 hp and more than 400 Nm of torque.

Though Porsche’s Cayman GT4; Ferrari’s 488 GTB; Audi’s new R8, Koenigsegg’s hybrid Regera, and Lambroghini’s Aventador SV all turned heads, it was the British contingent which stole the limelight

April 2015 | Issue 3 | Volume 18 | www.themanufacturer.com 37

sectorfocus

Is the UK steel industry in fine fettle or suffering terminal corrosion? It has changed and is changing, and there is life in it yet, Ruari McCallion reports.

38www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

T

o paraphrase Mark Twain, reports of the death of the UK steel industry have been somewhat exaggerated. To many outside observers – and even to people involved in manufacturing – the toppling of the towers at Ravenscraig, Llanwern and Ebbw Vale symbolised the end of the industry but the UK has a history of innovation, which has enabled production to continue.

The peak of production in the past 25 years was 1997, when output from

UK mills exceeded 18 million tonnes, according to EEF. More recently, 2007’s output was 14.4 million tonnes, before the banking-led recession.

Since the all-time low of 9.5 million tonnes in 2011 we have seen an upward trend once again, with output exceeding 12 million ingot tonnes in 2014, according to John

UK Steel

SECTOR FOCUS

John Brierley said he expects the UK’s future steel production will be focused on rolling and finishing.

Brierley, past president of the National Association of Steel Distributors; board member of the Steel Association and a non-executive director of Brown McFarlane. UK steel demand is stronger than in the rest of Europe and is now only 10% below the 2008 peak. Growth continues across the world, although less so in the developed markets.

Regular painting has kept the iconic railway bridge functioning to high standards for 125 years, while the road bridge is showing the strain after less than half that time Steel growing

“Excluding 2008/9, the annual growth of steel is still running at four to five % per annum compound,” Mr Brierley said. “One of the key indicators [of future demand] is the use of steel per capita. Usage in the emerging economies, including China, India and Brazil, is much less than in the mature markets in Europe and N America, so we are still seeing growth.” A big barrier in the way of expanded primary steel production in the UK and EU is environmental legislation; carbon taxes add at least 10 per cent to production costs EU. “China and India make around half the world’s steel; there isn’t as much concern there about pollution,” he continued. “The cost of moving something 80-90 miles across land is about the equivalent of bringing it in simple bulk cargo ships from China.” If there is no

transport advantage then it looks very much as if primary production has a limited future in the UK. “Tata Steel (which owns most of steel capacity in the UK) has a lot of capacity in India. I expect the UK’s production will be focused on rolling and finishing,” he said.

Tata Steel has two integrated sites in the UK – at Scunthorpe and Port Talbot – and a third in Ijmuiden, Netherlands.

Port Talbot makes slab, hot rolled, cold rolled and galvanised coil. Scunthorpe produces bloom, billet and slab; medium sections, rail, wire rod and plate. The company’s third UK plant, on Teesside, was mothballed in 2009 and then sold to Sahaviriya Steel Industries (SSI) of Thailand in 2011. After a multi-million pound refurbishment programme, including the relining of the blast furnace, it officially reopened in April 2012 and now produces billets that are sent to its downstream rolling plants in Thailand.

Steel crazy, after all these years

Tata’s other facilities in the UK range from an R&D facility near Middlesbrough, Teesside, to narrow strip and bright bar in the West Midlands, in Walsall and Wednesbury, respectively. Spectators who attended the Ryder Cup 2010 in Newport, S Wales, parked near and were transported past the Llanwern site, which is made up of a hot strip mill, a April 2015 | Issue 3 | Volume 18 | www.themanufacturer.com 39

UK Steel

Peak output of UK steel in 1997, the highest in the past 25 years.

Better and faster Look carefully to make more effectively The cycle time of industrial process will always be governed by the pace of its slowest component but the trick is to look in the right place.

The general belief is that “capacity is king” and the tendency is to focus on where the money has been spent – on the big pieces of kit.

“When we looked at the real flow, we better understood the real constraints and bottlenecks,” said Hugh Williams, managing director of Hughenden Consulting, which is based in High Wycombe. He was talking specifically about his experiences with three steel companies with whom he has worked in the past 20 years. All had different lead times; one worked on a monthly cycle and found that it could cut it by 75% – to just one week.

cold strip mill and a hot dip galvanising line. It rolls 1.5 million tonnes of steel coil per annum for automotive, construction and general engineering applications.

Grain-oriented electrical sheet (GOES) is made at the nearby Orb works.

Further west, golfers at Machynys, near Llanelli, cannot miss the Trostre works that makes tinplate and other packaging steels. The Tata name is also emblazoned across plants at Shotton,

40www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

“It’s about understanding how each piece of plant worked,” Hughenden said. The normal practice was to set things up and, when they ran well, to keep going. “The reality was that there was a fight between what Production thought was good and what the customer wanted.” He worked with Ruuki in Solihull, West Midlands, which had a three-day lead time for a particular range of special steels.

“That looked very good but the material was actually worked on for only three hours. The rest of the time was spent waiting,” he explained.

Over no less than 32 different projects, guided by the Theory of Constraints, lead time was driven down to 24 hours.

“Companies rightly invest in plant that can give better quality but that isn’t the solution to flow problems,” said Hughenden. “You must look at the whole value chain and away from the ‘prime plant’ mentality. It isn’t simply about keeping the machines busy.”

N Wales (galvanised coil); Motherwell, Scotland (steel plate and quenched material); Teesside (heavy sections at the Teesside Beam Mill and steel tubes at Hartlepool); Rotherham (engineering steel); and Corby (steel tubes).

Clearly, Great Britain retains a significant capacity for steel making – but what is it used for?

“The auto sector is the biggest user of steel in the UK, followed by construction

SECTOR FOCUS

The amount Tata Steel’s steel coil Llanwern site produces per year for automotive, construction and general engineering applications and mechanical equipment,” said Brierley. The importance of the auto industry is perhaps paradoxical, as Tataowned Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has switched to all-aluminium construction of its vehicles.

“JLR’s choice is very much about lightness and it’s the only one to have gone down that route,” he explained.

“Steel is still the cheaper material to make cars from. You can’t weld aluminium and steel is more malleable.”

The development of special steels, such as HSS and UHSS (high strength and ultra-high strength steels) have helped in the drive for lighter, stronger materials.

Rust never sleeps – but it can be sedated

“Mild steel has a tensile strength of 250Nm (Newtons/metre2). HSS is three times that and you will find it in critical areas of the car that need high-strength materials, in crash and crumple zones,” Brierley continued. But steel also wants to corrode and crumble, as fast as it can. Improved galvanising methods and the development of duplex steels have changed the picture somewhat but demand for steel has been healthy not just because of the auto sector; construction is a major customer and the pickup in that industry has fed back through to busy mills.

“Bridges and high-rise buildings tend to be made significantly of steel in the UK, but of high-stressed concrete elsewhere in Europe,” he maintained.

“People build in steel for the long term – just look at the Forth Bridge.” He has a point. Regular painting has kept the iconic railway bridge functioning to high standards for 125 years, while

The Manufacturer magazine in conjunction with the leading automation equipment suppliers has established The Automation Advisory Board to educate owner-managers and factory directors about what automation equipment can do and the benefits it can bring to UK manufacturers.

For more information contact Henry Anson, Managing Director, The Manufacturer E: h.anson@hennikgroup.com T: +44 (0)20 7401 6033

Automation needs to rise to the board level in companies of all sizes, but especially larger SMEs where the capital equipment could make a profound difference to winning contracts. Companies in non-auto sectors, who are unfamiliar with the range, capability and simplicity of automation kit, need and deserve to know what automation options are available.

This year it is a business risk not to be informed about the benefits this technology can bring.

bit.ly/AABautomation The Automation Advisory Board is proudly supported by:

UK Steel

SECTOR FOCUS

Bright ideas: making it in the UK The UK steel industry’s strength is innovation and added value.

Ruuki UK Ltd makes special steels including Expression™ and Form™ building façade systems and other construction-grade steels, as well as Optim 700 QL1extra high-strength, quenched and tempered (Q), low-temperature tough (L) structural steels. SSAB, its parent, is a leader in UHSS for the auto industry and other applications.

Caparo plc’s activities in the UK include Caparo Wire, Ductile Stourbridge Cold Mills, Firth Cleveland Steel Strip and JB & S Lees in its Speciality Steels division.

Sheffield Forgemasters specialises in large bespoke castings and forgings as well as standard rolls, ingots and bar. It recently received £36m support from the Regional Growth Fund for a variety of equipment in the melt shop, forge and machine shops Tata Steel Llanwern steelworks

It is not easy to make money in steel in 2015 and exploitation of future opportunities will continue to rely on innovation and development the road bridge is showing the strain after less than half that time. However, the demand from the North Sea oil and gas industry has essentially been satisfied but there is a legacy; the innovations and developments from that challenging environment can be applied to other industries. For example Brown McFarlane, Brierley’s company, specialises in super duplex steel. It offers high corrosion resistance, high resistance to corrosion cracking, and high yield strength and tensile strength.

It is used in flow lines, risers, process vessels, separators, coolers, manifolds, and process piping in offshore applications; and in heat exchangers, boilers, and pressure vessels in petrochemical and chemical processing plant. Do renewables offer the same opportunities as have been enjoyed in conventional energy?

Time and tide

“Wind farms have probably reached their zenith,” said Brierley. Solar relies on

42www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

plastics. The opportunity he sees in renewables is in tidal energy, which is reliable, very powerful and has a characteristic that is very close to his heart of steel. “Tidal power plants use a considerable amount of steel. They’re like wind turbines under the sea but obviously less visible.

The challenges include corrosion, because they are located in salt water.

You can protect the steel but wherever you have a moving part, sealing is a challenge.”

But these challenges can be overcome, as the history of the North Sea proves – and as the existing tidal barrages at Rance, in Brittanny, and Strangford Lough, N

Special Metals Wiggin, in Hereford, invented Inconel high-strength, highly corrosion resistant and very light nickel-chromium alloy. It offers nickel and cobalt alloys in a range of forms to aerospace, auto, marine, chemical and other industries.

Swann-Morton Ltd, in Sheffield, is a world leader in surgical equipment. Its product range extends to around 70 individual blades shapes and 30 different handles.

Sheffield. The traditional home of the steel industry now produces more steel by value than ever and the area is responsible for around 10% of the UK’s total steel output. A recent innovation is Carr’s Lustre Silver, described as a ‘stainless silver’ alloy that resists tarnishing and can be easily worked.

Ireland, demonstrate. Rance is a 240MW station; the proposed barrage in Swansea Bay, S Wales, would be around the same and the mooted Severn Estuary project would produce about 40 times as much – around the same as the UK’s total current onshore windpower capacity. The 10.5MW Skerries Tidal Farm in N Wales was given support by the Welsh Assembly in February 2013 and received planning permission in 2014. It’s hoped that it will be generating in 2016.

It is not easy to make money in steel in 2015 and exploitation of future opportunities will continue to rely on innovation and development. The Carbon Tax and other environmental legislation will not go away; Ravenscraig and Ebbw Vale are not coming back. Companies that rely on making steel that sells for £50/tonne will struggle; far better to go into advanced steels, special applications, UHSS or super-duplex, especially as the latter sells for closer to £900/tonne.

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INTERVIEW Pedal to the metal

Dr Henrik Adam, Chief Commercial Officer for Tata Steel Europe, reveals his strategy for development in a sector where demand is growing, but costs are rising to meet the challenge.

‘‘T

he world continues to need increasing volumes of steel, which is by far the more widely used – and most recycled – industrial metal. Steel consumption globally will be well over 1.5bn tonnes in 2015,” says Dr Henrik Adam, chief commercial officer for Tata Steel Europe Ltd, testament to the fact that the future is bright for the UK steel industry despite a recession that knocked the wind out of the sector’s sails in 2008.

“Last year European steel demand grew by about 2%, which means it remains around 25% below the 2007 pre-crisis peak (though that was an extraordinarily high peak). This was lower than earlier forecasts, as demand declined towards the end of the year.

The picture was much the same in the

44 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

UK market. Forecasters are predicting further growth this year, but only of a modest nature.

“However it is important to bear in mind global steel demand is growing more quickly and is about 30% higher than it was in 2007.”

And it’s this positivity that will help Tata navigate some potentially difficult times ahead. Energy costs in Europe are higher than in other key competitor regions. Europe’s lack of an energy supply solution and the increasing burden of emissions costs are a serious risk to the competitiveness of European steelmaking. Adam explains, “We are investing in our European operations for the long term, improving their competitiveness despite the extremely challenging times we live in.

“In these circumstances, it’s vital that the European Commission and the UK Government acknowledge that their climate change targets are impossible for the steel industry to achieve without breakthrough technology.”

Adam is adamantly proud of what he calls the “tremendous amount” the steel industry has already done to reduce emissions “which have fallen 50% in recent decades”. However he is gravely concerned that the best performers in the sector are limited as to what can be achieved with current technology. As a solution to this, European steelmakers have joined together to work on certain potential new technologies.

Adam elaborates, “One of the furthest progressed of which – called HIsarna – is being pioneered in a pilot facility at Tata Steel’s IJmuiden plant in the Netherlands.

Dr Henrik Adam, Chief Commercial Officer, Tata Steel Europe

“HIsarna has the potential to significantly improve the already high levels of resource efficiency in European steel making, including through reducing today’s steel industry emissions by at least a further 20%.

But it will be hugely expensive to scale up and prove commercially on a single plant, never mind to roll out across the industry once proven – a process that would take decades.

“The intention of the Commission to introduce stringent new reduction targets in a few years’ time therefore totally ignores technological reality.

Attempts by the UK Government to push the green agenda risk being equally counterproductive when it comes to the steel industry.”

Adam also refers to steelmakers contending with these additional costs while trying to make the absolute most of the technological lead they undoubtedly enjoy in their services and products. Work is constantly needed to maintain that lead, as it represents their chief competitive edge. The chief commercial officer is proud to say that, “Tata Steel brought 30 new products to market in 2014 and recently hit a milestone of having 100 new products in its portfolio following a revamp of its new product development programme a few years ago.”

So with the general election fast approaching Adam is hoping the next UK government, as well as all EU governments, will take measures to stimulate economic activity, “We’d like to see spending on infrastructure being stepped up as soon as possible across Europe and it’s notable that such efforts are beginning to be seen, including spending on transport,” Adam tells .

“We remain concerned about carbon and energy policy, which imposes penalties on emissions despite the fact that technologies to avoid the overwhelmingly vast majority of those emissions do not presently exist in steelmaking. Governments at both UK and EU levels have acknowledged the risk of deindustrialisation that current and proposed carbon taxes pose, but this isn’t being adequately reflected yet in changes to carbon legislation.

“In the UK we are also concerned about national dimensions of energy and climate change policy where we face additional burdens.”

INTERVIEW

European power house visited Tata Steel in Llanwern, South Wales, to view its new £11m heavygauge decoiler, capable of supplying manufacturers with stronger steel to improve their own products.

The machine is the most powerful in Europe and can process 270,000 tonnes of hot rolled coil a year. The decoiler unwinds, flattens, then cuts the steel to size. Its strength enables it to produce ultra-flat sheet in thicknesses of up to 25mm, providing ample capability to meet the current as well as future requirements of customers in the construction and earth-moving equipment (CEME), and materials handling sectors.

Adam brims with enthusiasm at the benefits the new piece of kit will bring.

“We can offer an improved product quality and supply manufacturers with stronger steel to improve their own.”

He adds that the investment is part of Tata’s overall strategy to better serve its customers by working with them to give them what they want and support them to achieve success in their own markets.

“Our customers take our product as large sheets, cut them into smaller components, before fabricating into assemblies. The flat sheets which the decoiler offers allow easier handling, and cutting and fabrication with improved appearance of the finished product.”

One of the great advantages, he maintains, is how future-proof the machine is, telling , “The decoiler is capable of processing the strengths and thicknesses that equipment makers are likely to need in the future. When even more

complex, stronger steel products are developed, the decoiler will be able to process them.”

Adam also mentions the supply chain benefits brought by a direct rail link allowing steel coils not produced at the site to be brought directly to the line, enabling the dispatch of finished products to customers in the North of England and Scotland, something which he says makes “Tata Steel unique amongst steel service centres in the UK”.

The catalyst for the hefty investment was customer demand. He explains, “Here in Llanwern, the investment was made in response to customers in the construction equipment, engineering and material handling sectors.

“They are looking for sheet products with high levels of flatness allowing easier handling and fabrication with improved appearance of the finished product. We chose Llanwern due to its proximity to the hot mill where the product is manufactured and the direct rail links nationwide.”

The investment was not without its challenges according to Adam.

“The greatest challenge has been to maintain high service levels to customers during a period when we are commissioning and ramping up a new line, which is significantly larger than its predecessors.

“Our ongoing challenge is to continue to work with and to support our customers, so that they can benefit from the superior product and service that we can now offer. We’re delighted to have the capacity and capability in place to support them in reaching their strategic objectives.”

The world continues to need increasing volumes of steel, which is by far the more widely used – and most recycled – industrial metal.

Steel consumption globally will be well over 1.5bn tonnes in 2015

April 2015 | Issue 3 | Volume 18 | www.themanufacturer.com 45

Dr Henrik Adam, Chief Commercial Officer, Tata Steel Europe

INTERVIEW

BIOGRAPHY Dr Henrik Adam Chief Commercial Officer Tata Steel Europe 1964: Born in Essen, Germany 1998: Joined ThyssenKrupp where he has undertaken a number of roles

Chairman of the board Electrical Steel India Ltd

Chairman of the Board of ThyssenKrupp Steel Japan

Director Sales and Engineering Auto

2011: Joined the Executive Committee of Tata Steel in Europe as Chief Commercial Officer Adam is a Mechanical Engineer, specialised in the field of Automotive Engineering, notably in the application of materials in vehicle design. Adam sits on the main board of directors at EEF. Adam has been the Chairman of WorldAutoSteel, the automotive group of the World Steel Association which successfully released multiple projects including UltraLight Steel Auto Body (ULSAB) and FutureSteelVehicle (FSV).

In his current role, Adam is responsible for the sales and marketing function, and for development and implementation of the market differentiation strategies and customer focus. Additonally, Adam oversees various operational units for the distribution of the firm’s steel in mainland Europe and the UK & Ireland, as well as in the field of Building Systems. Finally, he is in charge of customer services, and oversees the regional market offices across the globe.

46 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

The £11m heavy-gauge decoiler is capable of supplying manufacturers with stronger steel to improve their own products

Adam is confident the Government has begun to acknowledge these issues, but urges “a faster move from word to deed”. He’s said he would also like the business rates regime to be addressed.

He believes the system has become unfit for purpose because it penalises and de-incentivises industries’ investment by increasing rateable values following upgrades. He explains to that UK business rates can be five to 10 times higher than at equivalent industrial plants in mainland Europe.

“We also strongly support the efforts by the European Steel Association (Eurofer) to bring the attention of the Commission to bear on rising levels of unfairly traded steel imports,” he attests.

“Imports into the EU rose more than 20% in 2014. We hope and expect that the UK Government insists in Brussels that free trade is always upheld, but only so long as it is fair (unsubsidised and not at dumping prices that damage markets, and where dumping risks are addressed quickly and robustly).”

Adam refers to China and parts of Eastern Europe as examples, saying, “Exports from China, whose output nowadays is running at 50% of global levels, are having a dramatic effect on world markets, having soared to almost 100m tonnes last year. There are also sources nearer to home in Eastern Europe and the Near East which have large capacities and in some cases advantageous raw materials positions.”

Regardless of the barriers, there is much to look forward to, Adam maintains.

It is important to bear in mind global steel demand is growing more quickly and is about 30% higher than it was in 2007

“There is a future for any steel producer in Europe that gets its strategy right.

Our aim here is to continue to give our customers the competitive edge by working collaboratively with them to provide products, services and processes that will enable them to succeed in their own markets.

“As part of that approach, we also look to sell a greater proportion of premium products that few or no other steel producers provide. Examples of such products are ultra-high-strength steels to help make more fuel-efficient cars and lighter, stronger steel for use in sustainable buildings.

“The European market is one of the most competitive in the world. To compete, we have to add value by offering truly innovative products and services that support our customers’ success. It’s also imperative that we continue to invest in and strengthen our assets – like the Llanwern decoiler – in order to meet customer needs in the UK and across Europe.”

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workforce. Continued support for employer-led training is essential.

Looking more directly at Sheffield Forgemasters what work, if any, has been carried out in recent years to help keep energy expenditures in check?

Mark Tomlinson Group Development Director, Sheffield Forgemasters Demand for UK steel has, not surprisingly, dropped since 2007 and the financial crisis. Do you see the UK steel industry rebounding anytime soon?

There is a mixed picture with some sectors performing well, while others lag behind. I think a general recovery in all markets is some time off and must be led by an improvement in industry confidence. We all hope for a period of stability and growth following the election in May, but it will take time for that to filter through the supply chain to raw material producers.

What do you see as the key barriers standing in the way of the UK steel industry becoming as profitable and productive as it was pre-recession?

The issues that concern steelmakers at the moment are those of competitiveness and skills. We have a very efficient steel industry, but it is faced with a distorted competitive environment where things like nonwholesale power costs are hugely different both across Europe and even more so across the world. By 2020 it

48 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

is estimated that half of our power costs will be made up of elements of green taxation and support for infrastructure that our competitors are largely insulated against, even though their environmental performance may be worse. Protection against these artificial charges has been agreed by Government, but a decision on how much and how soon this might be applied is still awaited.

Skills are a key issue in the modern production environment. We need a healthy steel industry to act as the foundation of advanced manufacturing.

Young people with the right blend of skills and attitude will shape the future of a balanced economy, and it is critical that the manufacturing supply chain is allowed to play its part in securing a talented and well-trained

One of the biggest advances in energy efficiency in recent years has been the ease with which energy (and carbon) accounting has allowed business decisions to be made based on improved information. Sheffield Forgemasters has been able to challenge and improve performance based on enhanced monitoring and reporting of energy use and carbon emissions. Since the 1990 benchmark year, our carbon emissions have dropped over 40% and improved planning, the replacement of inefficient equipment and the implementation of innovative production methods have all contributed to optimise our use of energy.

Despite the recent drop in demand for UK steel, Forgemasters has been on a growth path, with the new expansion and forging press installed in 2010. How has this affected business since, are there any plans for further expansion?

As a privately owned company, all our profits are reinvested in the business. This has allowed us to significantly improve and expand our facilities over recent years. We have invested over £55m in capital equipment including a new forge and machine shop as well as significant investment in product and process improvements and developing our R&D expertise.

These investments have allowed us to reduce subcontract processing, access new markets and reach further down the supply chain in terms of extra added value both in manufacturing and, importantly, design. Further expansion is planned in our “nonmanufactured” output where we believe the application of our world class R&D and our unrivalled experience can benefit a range of new customers looking for more than just traditional build-to-print work.

Despite the image of the steel industry being “dirty, dusty, heavy work”, it appears Sheffield Forgemasters has managed to keep a fairly strong stream of recruitment in the region. What actions are being put in place to make sure the business has a solid future workforce?

As an advanced manufacturer, we compliment the “dirty, dusty, heavy work” with the application of world class research, technical discipline and commitment to quality to ensure that our workforce can be justifiably proud of the components we produce. The ability to take part in making some of the world’s biggest and best forgings and castings is an understandable draw for the region’s best talent. We also recognise that because of the specialist nature of our production process, “growing our own” future workforce is a key undertaking.

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Learning to lean

Lean Management Journal editor Andrew Putwain reveals what’s been happening in the world of continuous improvement in this month’s Learning to lean.

H

ome to National Apprenticeship Week, March is a time to look seriously at the issues affecting the world of manufacturing and an excuse for the industry to look closely at ways to ensure the next generation is adequately trained and engaged to carry on.

The world of STEM is one many young people see as uninteresting and old-fashioned. A frequent gripe among many in manufacturing is that the title “engineer” has been diluted. Apparently, everyone is an engineer these days, from the person who fixes your boiler, to the person sending rockets into space and everyone in between.

It is true manufacturing has an image problem. Everyone thinks factories are dirty, noisy places where burly men compare their favourite page three models. These days with the growing crisis of skills, we need to blot out this misconception and devise serious ideas on how to fix the problem.

In March, I was invited to visit the SMMT headquarters where I witnessed a group of Year 10 students taking part in the charity Greenpoint’s car making competition, which encourages young people to become interested in engineering and hopefully pursue a career in STEM. This is a great initiative, and mirrors the ideas of the Royal Aeronautical Society’s annual competition to build a plane.

One great aspect of the competition is the variety of schools involved, which included inner-city comps and schools from deprived areas. In addition, school representatives were determined to encourage girls as well; showing them manufacturing has various aspects, including marketing and business, which is vital if Britain is to compete

50 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

with emerging economies.

These sorts of ideas are imperative if Britain wants to save itself from a looming skills gap.

The economy can only be rebalanced if there are the requisite numbers to do so. This month’s LMJ looks at this too, with an in-depth article looking at the schemes and ideas encouraging apprentices in the workplace to learn the vital skills they need to succeed.

We interview Ian King, manufacturing growth lead at EEF’s recently launched Lean Academy, a centre in Birmingham bringing lean skills to SMEs and not just the big boys. The centre also trains apprentices in lean so they have knowledge of LSS and continuous

improvement from the inception of their careers, rather than shoehorning it when their habits are already ingrained.

We speak to Jon Radford, engineering trainer and skills assessor from the AMRC, who runs a similar operation but with the added bonus of allowing apprentices to become NVQ accredited in their lean learnings. We speak to several of the apprentices who tell us about how beneficial they’ve found the course, and hopefully making British manufacturing a more economical, competitive force on the global playing field.

Don’t tell them it’s lean and you’ll get away with it.

Andy Hyde, who works for the Department of eHealth and Technology, South East Regional Health Authority, Norway shares a lean case study. At the time this case study was undertaken, he was director of quality and performance management.

www.leanmj.com

Lean manufacturing

Industry 4.0: Where does it leave lean?

LMJ editorial board member Dr. Torbjørn Netland presents his arguments on where the digital revolution can incorporate lean and how they can feed off each other.

G

ermany – the European manufacturing powerhouse – has set a new course for its future high-tech industry. Under the strategy Industry 4.0, Germany is in transition to the fourth industrial revolution. Cloud computing, internet of things, real-time sense-andresponse technologies, cloud-based services, big data analytics, robotics, artificial intelligence, 3D printing and so on are foreseen to revolutionise how we make things and deliver services today.

Indeed, our factories and businesses are changing. But where does this leave lean? Will developments in technology leave lean irrelevant? Is lean a hype that is soon to end?

How it started

There was no big project plan, no major quality improvement milestones, no great announcement. There was no burning platform, no crisis to be addressed, just a general feeling we should be better than we were.

The one basic principle the implementation was built on, was

Germany – the European manufacturing powerhouse – has set a new course for its future high-tech industry

The four industrial revolutions

Industry 4.0 is the current manufacturing strategy of the German government. If Germany thinks it is the right direction for its future competitiveness, we should all probably listen.

Industry 4.0 was first presented as a concept in 2011, and has been ownership of the improvements had to be with the people doing the work and facts, not just data provided by some external data analysis team, should drive the improvement.

Developing lean management

The rest of the management team at this time were not involved and were largely unaware of the changes taking place and the process being used. However, by 2010 the targets in almost all areas were achieved or levels greatly improved and it was being noticed.

The next step was to use a phrase the author doesn’t really like. We set a big hairy audacious goal (BHAG) - let’s make this into a new hospital management system. We explained

researched, debated and further defined since then. Industry 4.0 is based on tight integration of modern information technology in the manufacturing and supply chain operations (called cyber-physical production systems). The objective is to create the intelligent factory during the two next decades. the philosophy to the rest of the management team through PDCA, processes, DIA-LIS and ownership of the improvements. The total planning process from the yearly political goals and demands document setting out the political expectations for the year for each hospital, to the internal planning process, monthly internal reporting and back to quarterly and yearly external reporting would be managed in the same was as clinical summary, waiting times and treatment guarantee defaults.

Diakonhjemmet Hospital performed averagely in 2006 and was catapulted near the top in 2011. Now, in 2014, the institution is number one in Norway in many of the categories.

April 2015 | Issue 3 | Volume 18 | www.themanufacturer.com 51

EEF Insights

Manufacturing Leadership

Not made in China Strategy is key as far as China is concerned says Richard May, Head of the Manufacturing Sector, DLA Piper.

C

hina has, since 2011, been the world’s largest manufacturer, but growth is slowing. Wages have risen to match higher living standards and employees are better educated and more demanding. China still suffers from IP abuses and political problems that deter investors and is losing some new factory investments to lower cost locations, such as Vietnam.

Manufacturers need to stop relying on low wages and fast economic growth for their China strategy and instead need to enhance their productivity, their methods of productdevelopment, and above all their supply chains – including more supervision and more simplicity. Manufacturers need to engage with China’s legal system. Intellectual property protection, employee stability, anti-corruption and dispute resolution are all vital for success. We highlight below some of the major issues to consider within your China strategy:

Labour market

If you make labour-intensive products you are probably already hedging between China and other countries

to reduce cost. In China, costs have increased due to the higher cost of the labour market and the increase in the value of the RMB. Manufacturers that invest in understanding the labour market save as many costs as those who seek to keep wages low.

Discerning consumers

For many types of products, e.g., high-tech gadgets, China’s consumers are more discerning than their Western counterparts and their tastes exceed the ability of local producers to satisfy them: leading to far more litigation against manufacturers. Understanding the local regulatory standards is therefore vital.

Supply chain and distribution network

Beijing and Shanghai are the obvious places to seek purchasers for international products, but there are also many other cities stepping up as their consumers become affluent and demanding. Most of the growth in demand comes from these cities, so distribution networks become more difficult to supervise bringing with it business risk. To mitigate this risk,

If done properly manufacturers can not only make use of the resources, talent and market that China has to offer, but can add cost and product benefits to their global business activities

52 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

manufacturers should try to hedge against this in their contracts to shift the burden of risk onto their materials suppliers or product buyers. Many manufacturers do not apply their homecountry standards in China, believing that China is a special case where local standards should apply.

Intellectual property fears

Fear of IP theft often results in R&D strategy being removed from the local team in China or refusal to engage with China at all. The belief is that this will reduce its IP risk profile. This approach is often wrong as the technology might be copied anyway. Businesses can usually strengthen their IP position or decrease the risk by fine-tuning their IP/ patent protection strategy. This could involve: a combination of patents and trade secrets and an aggressive patent filing/prosecution strategy.

From a commercial perspective, an international entity could consider partnering with a major Chinese player to better exploit the market. This will also put the company in a better position when enforcing IP/patent rights in China in the future.

Rapid change, and Free Trade Zones

It is important to maintain an accurate understanding of the various developments taking place in the foreign investment sphere in China, because many of these developments can be beneficial to manufacturers.

For example, the Shanghai Free Trade Zone is the first Hong Kong-style free trade area in mainland China. Imports of necessary goods for manufacturing will all be exempt from duty tax. Other changes include a gradual shift towards the ability of foreign investors to establish companies without approvals and a new dispute resolution procedure using Hong Kong courts for disputes anywhere in the mainland.

In summary manufacturing in China can still be the right choice. If done properly manufacturers can not only make use of the resources, talent and market that China has to offer, but can add cost and product benefits to their global business activities.

DLA Piper has a strong manufacturing team in China across its offices in Hong Kong, Beijing and Shanghai led by partner Nicolas Groffman.

Manufacturing Services Thought Leadership Network [MSTLN]

Raising awareness, in UK manufacturing, that ensuring long term success requires companies to increasingly focus on creating value in the customers’ business, rather than exclusively in the production facility or R&D lab.

Benefit from: Networking Q & As Articles Insight Case studies

Becoming a member is easy. Simply visit www.mstln.co.uk to register* and start communicating with like-minded manufacturers today.

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Cranfield National Manufacturing Debate

Manufacturing Leadership

For the UK the key is surely to reshore only the right businesses based on sophistication, complexity and skills

The great debate

Now in its sixth year, The National Manufacturing Debate (NMD) held at Cranfield University is based around a critical topic, each year. This year’s topic?

How do we develop the capability for effective reshoring to the UK?

T

he established format of the day is selected key speakers deliver their speeches in the morning fuelling food for thought followed by the debate in the afternoon. The panel for the debate consists of influential business professionals ready to offer their opinions and knowledge to the floor in “Question Time” style. This year colleagues from USA and Mexico are also joining the debate.

Lord Alec Broers is chairing the event and the final debate will be presented

by Nick Hussey, managing director of The Manufacturer.

An interesting aspect to the whole day is that a white paper will be published by Cranfield. This is produced by a group of MSc students,

54 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

supervised by Professor Rajkumar Roy and Dr. Patrick McLaughlin and gives an analysis of the facts around UK reshoring and the capability. The report will highlight the UK capabilities required to sustain the reshoring that has started in the UK. All registered participants of the NMD will be invited to take part in a national survey before the debate.

Reshoring is increasing in UK Manufacturing, driven by shifting consumer preferences, a reduction of the wage gap with emerging economies, increasing quality concerns, volatile international transport costs, concern for the environmental impact and a desire by management to better control quality and supply chain risks.

There is a government incentive to

support reshoring in the UK. NMD will debate the capabilities required to keep the reshored manufacturing within the UK for a long time. The debate will be informed by good practice from the USA and Mexico.

Come along to the debate to find out views from the keynote speakers and to find out what the white paper recommends and discuss the outcomes.

Speaking ahead of the event, Nick Hussey said: “Reshoring is a hot political subject in many developed economies and increasingly in the developing world as they seek to protect fledgling manufacturing businesses from the effects of reshoring. For the UK the key is surely to reshore only the right businesses based on sophistication, complexity and skills. We must avoid competing for work based on low skills and low value add. But how do you identify and classify where we should restore and where we should not?

The debate will tackle these and many other issues surrounding the huge reshoring challenge.”

FURTHER INFO: The National Manufacturing Debate is held in May every year. This year it will be held on Wednesday May, 20.

Register now to attend for this free event at: www.nationalmanufacturing-debate.org.uk

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Robert Pickles, Head of Corporate & Government Affairs at Canon, reveals how manufacturing is one of the UK’s biggest strengths, regardless of a slackened productivity rate.

M

anufacturers today are facing more complex business challenges than ever before. In order to stay competitive in a global marketplace, they are under increasing pressure to produce higher quality goods at faster response times and at lower costs.

Mass customisation is adding to the weight of

56 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

these considerations, and in order to balance customer expectations with sustainable growth and productivity, manufacturing must capitalise on recent technology advancements, including 3D print and the benefits that digital transformation can bring.

Although manufacturing only accounts for about 10% of the UK economy according to the ONS’ Changing Shape of Manufacturing 2014, the sector has always been a contributor to higher incomes and higher productivity. Last summer, the ONS revealed that a weak period in manufacturing productivity in the first half of 2014 was coming to an end. Since then, manufacturing growth has soared. In February 2015, growth hit a seven-month high as the latest CIPS UK Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) rose

Manufacturing: the wind in the UK’s sails

For a strong and growing manufacturing sector, improving workflow and communication while simultaneously identifying best practice within business environments will not only encourage innovation – it will ensure successful outcomes and heightened productivity

a full point to 54.1. Optimism in the industry has never been better.

Nowhere was this sense of confidence and buoyancy felt more keenly than at the EEF National Manufacturing Conference in London, which took place at the end of February this year. As a proud sponsor of the event, Canon hosted a roundtable with a number of senior figures from the manufacturing industry and EEF chief economist Lee Hopley to further discuss the issues of productivity in the UK and in the manufacturing sector in particular, and how manufacturers can tackle them.

It is clear that there are challenges ahead. Productivity levels in general are currently higher in the G7 than in the UK, and the gap continues to grow, especially since the financial crisis of 2008. But despite a slightly shaky period last year, manufacturing is leading the way in UK productivity.

In the past 10 years, manufacturing productivity growth has outpaced the economy as a whole in 28 quarters out of 40. There are several possible reasons for this: a more skilled workforce; an improvement in the information technology base; more investment in research and development and a more integrated global economy. The combined effects of this, is in the past year manufacturing productivity increased by over 5% compared with only 0.3% within the entire UK economy.

But should it stop there? After all, a strong UK economy needs a strong UK manufacturing sector. British manufacturing can – and should – continue to build on its success and whether its streamlining processes

Manufacturing Leadership

per month, we are now handling or improving the layout of factories, 15,000 and all paper invoices are there are plenty of ways even for now scanned and immediately filed, manufacturing to become leaner and leading to a massive reduction in more efficient. paperwork. The electronic workflow Improved communications is one also gives complete visibility of who example. A well-known source of has each invoice.” inefficiency for many businesses is a In other words, technology and lack of visibility and knowledge of the standards when applied correctly, can not day-to-day organisation, which can only help businesses improve efficiency impair the quality of decision-making through eliminating excess paperwork, and lead to another huge source of but can also help improve visibility and waste: waiting. Waiting for decisions, collaboration between departments materials, information and equipment can lead to losing time and productivity. within a company to speed up internal processes and communication.

To overcome such a challenge, an A final thought at the roundtable was internal communication system which the relationship between innovation allows fluid collaboration between and standardisation. It is widely departments is key, as well as an agreed that an innovative approach is external process and a collaborative indispensable, not only for developing relationship with key suppliers, to make sure all of the right information and stock is available at the right time.

A well-known source of inefficiency Another point that was continually revisited for many businesses is a lack of visibility and throughout the EEF knowledge of the day-to-day organisation, roundtable was that of the benefits of which can impair the quality of decisiontechnology. “Ditching making and lead to another huge source of inefficient paperwork should be a key priority, waste: waiting and manufacturers should never underutilise their IT teams” stated new products but also for future growth Brian McCulloch, IT Technical Manager and profitability. Standardisations on at Wrightbus Ltd. the other hand, can unquestionability “Back-end processes can hide a raise work efficiency and ensure myriad of waste and inefficiencies, and product quality. Although both elements nipping these in the bud can make a huge difference to the bottom line of the are crucial to optimise productivity levels, they are often thought to be company,” he added. mutually exclusive. Is there any way of Crucial for back-end processes is these two facets co-existing? how they store and handle information.

At Canon, we don’t just think Paper-heavy companies for example, that this is possible – it’s essential. tend to store vital information in a The development of standards can number of different places, from make a measurable difference to the notebooks to files to unsecured success of innovative businesses by computer drives – a huge source creating a common framework for of inefficiency and disorganisation. innovation and establishing set rules Wrightbus Ltd, which designs and and guidelines. Standards do not manufactures for the UK and European have to be restrictive – but they do markets, managed all of its invoices have to establish beneficial processes on paper until five years ago. Invoices, within the organisation. For a strong which didn’t pass through processing, and growing manufacturing sector, were attached to a handwritten note improving workflow and communication which was walked around the site until while simultaneously identifying best signed off, and brought back to the finance team again. “Since we replaced practice within business environments will not only encourage innovation – it the slow paper-heavy process with a will ensure successful outcomes and digital one, our productivity has shot up.” stated Brian, “From 4,500 invoices heightened productivity.

April 2015 | Issue 3 | Volume 18 | www.themanufacturer.com 57

A vital role

I

Jane Robinson is Co-founder of laser cutting and engraving company Cutting Technologies and was named as an exemplar in last year’s Top 100

Jane Robinson believes the message to women about getting involved in manufacturing is all wrong – and it has been for some time.

t seems like nearly every week we’re hit with another report about how we’re failing to attract girls and women into STEM-related careers.

Campaign after campaign is launched aiming to “challenge stereotypes” and show girls that a career in manufacturing or engineering is indeed “not just for boys”. But the message never seems to quite hit the mark.

This isn’t just a feminist issue or something we need to tackle because of fairness or equality; it’s critically important to the success of our industries. Last month, the 2015 Annual Manufacturing Report revealed that

58 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

nearly half of all manufacturers think school and college leavers are poorly prepared for work. It highlighted that skills shortages and staff retention continue to be a challenge for most manufacturers, with more than a third of manufacturing companies saying they have 10 or more vacancies.

To me, the answer seems to be staring us in the face. If STEM-related careers aren’t attracting women, we’ve effectively halved our talent pool. If we could find ways of increasing the interest from the female half of the population, filling those vacancies shouldn’t be a problem. A report by the Society of

It’s simple. We’ve got our PR wrong, and it’s been wrong for decades. The sell to girls has to be framed in a different way

Opinion

Biology calculated that increasing participation by women in STEM could add an extra £2bn to the UK’s GDP. It’s a no brainer that this should be a priority for all of us.

So what’s going wrong? Why do girls baulk at the idea of a life in manufacturing or engineering? It’s simple.

We’ve got our PR wrong, and it’s been wrong for decades. The sell to girls has to be framed in a different way.

An Oxford University study published earlier this year highlighted that girls rate “lifestyle” issues more highly than boys when it comes to making career choices. They tend to value job security and a sense of purpose within their careers.

Young women, according to the study, were looking for jobs which made them feel “worthwhile” and met their emotional needs.

This very clear difference between the sexes needs to be carefully considered and it’s integral to how we package careers within manufacturing.

Ceri Roberts is a case in point. Last year this talented young woman spent 10 weeks at my laser cutting and engraving company Cutting Technologies.

Ceri was the only female on her product design course at Bangor University. She’d always enjoyed “making stuff” at school and was fortunate to be encouraged by really good teachers.

At university she is supported by an excellent mentor who has helped her develop the confidence to reach out to companies for vital work experience.

Ceri says the placement at Cutting Technologies opened her eyes to the possibilities within manufacturing and engineering. The world became a much bigger place for Ceri when she realised how her creative skills can actually be employed and how she can achieve the job satisfaction and sense of worth she seeks. She left the placement with increased confidence about the breadth of work she can do, a better idea of the opportunities available in UK manufacturing and, of course, with an increased determination to succeed.

Like Ceri, I want to see more companies giving young women the chance to explore their skill set, and to work out how they can achieve the sense of purpose they are seeking.

A new movement which started in the US and is gaining momentum has real potential for engaging more girls in manufacturing and engineering careers.

STEAM is all about incorporating Arts into the traditional Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths configuration, and highlighting the important role that creativity plays in both the understanding and application of STEM. We know the opportunity to be creative is a real draw for girls so anything we can do to push that element of manufacturing and engineering to the fore can only be a good thing. Let’s hope STEAM starts gaining traction within schools and industry on this side of the Atlantic too.

In the meantime, if we are to encourage a new generation into STEM-related careers we have to think very differently about what we’re offering as employers and how our processes may help or hinder our efforts. The Oxford University research found that men tended to contemplate, then actually make career choices, earlier in their university degrees than women. Men race ahead again when it comes to academic work and extracurricular activities and are more confident in approaching the recruitment process.

We need to help young women gain confidence, feel empowered about the recruitment process and then we need to ensure we help them maintain their confidence over time. This means supporting women to reach the very pinnacle of their profession.

Whilst this confidence building starts with gender stereotypes and in the

Manufacturing Leadership

classroom, we all have a role to play in ensuring women are encouraged to believe and achieve.

Those women already working with the sector must become much more visible whether that’s through sponsorship, mentoring, accepting committee roles or being available for comment when journalists call.

We know the opportunity to be creative is a real draw for girls so anything we can do to push that element of manufacturing and engineering to the fore can only be a good thing We need to be more vocal about the opportunities for women within manufacturing. We need to trail-blaze, set an example and show young women that, stellar jobs do exist which reward both financially and emotionally.

I was honoured to be named one of The Manufacturer Top 100 role models last year, and it’s something I’m taking very seriously. All women in senior positions within male-dominated industries have a crucial part to play in opening doors to younger women and showing that jobs in sectors like manufacturing aren’t just for boys.

If talking about my experiences and the benefits I get from my career can encourage a handful of girls to consider a career in manufacturing, I’ll be happy. I often joke that if girls don’t have the voice for X Factor but still want the sports car and designer shoes, then manufacturing can be a pretty good alternative route. It might raise a giggle but there’s a serious point too – it shows that manufacturing doesn’t have to mean dirty workshops and no glamour, as well as highlighting the financial rewards available.

Since 2012 the number of women in engineering has doubled to 26,000.

But women still comprise only 9% of the profession in the UK, which is the lowest rate in Europe. The figures speak for themselves and remind us why we must take action and do everything in our powers to support more young women like Ceri and remove any barriers to their growth and success.

April 2015 | Issue 3 | Volume 18 | www.themanufacturer.com 59

Stuart Maclachlan

Employee of the Month April 2015 Stuart Maclachlan

Head of Research and Development at international materials consultancy, Lucideon

EMPLOYEE OF THE MONTH

What is your role and what are your main responsibilities?

Lucideon offers product and process development coupled with analysis and testing and a focus on advanced materials.

Innovation is very important to us as it helps grow not only our business but also that of our customers.

As Head of R&D at Lucideon, I promote technical innovation both within the company and working to advance developments from the laboratory into commercial environments.

What are the key technical skills you use?

I need a wide understanding of science and technology particularly in the area of advanced materials, and how this applies to the commercial world. Additionally abilities to link industry and the research base and to co-ordinate and manage complex projects are key to my role.

CV in brief Stuart Maclachlan Age: 59 Education: BSc Materials Science and Technology, University of Bradford MSc Physical Metallurgy , University of Manchester MBA, Open University Fellow of the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining Career to date: 1978 – 1996: Silent Power Ltd, Runcorn…developing high energy battery systems 1996 – 1998: TWI, Cambridge…project development 1999 – Present: Lucideon Limited (formerly Ceram) Hobbies and interests: I enjoy badminton, pub quizzes, gym training and walking the dog at weekends. I would like more time to learn foreign languages and cycle more.

60 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

What personal characteristics help you in your role?

I am very enthusiastic about the benefits materials can bring as often this is not recognised. In addition, I need to be resourceful and look at situations from different angles to successfully manage the different aspects of innovation projects.

What do you consider to be your biggest personal success at the company so far?

One project that stands out has been early involvement in the development of Lucideon’s field enhanced processing technology.

Supported by the Regional Growth Fund, the project aims to lower the firing time and temperature of ceramics,

cutting manufacturers’ energy bills dramatically, whilst also reducing their carbon footprint.

Being part of the team in the ‘ReBioStent’ project, a collaboration with 13 partners from academia and industry, is an exciting challenge. The resulting multi-functional biomaterials, designed to reduce the risk of restenosis and thrombosis, will be drugloaded and bioresorbable and will have improved mechanical properties compared to current metal stents.

What are the most rewarding parts of your job?

The variety, a sense of making a difference, meeting new people and being part of a great team, which combine to make my role both interesting and fulfilling.

Do you have a grand career ambition?

It’s to see Lucideon broaden even more its offer internationally – and to see more young people come into the company and make their mark.

Lucideon announced it is opening up a new facility at the world-renowned Cambridge Science Park. We are also opening a new facility in North Carolina to tap into the region’s acclaimed expertise in materials science, and have better access to USA markets.

That new centre is in addition to Lucideon’s facilities in South Carolina and New York State.

This positioning gives us a great opportunity to take the business further onto the world stage and see our innovations have an impact internationally.

At the same time, bringing in young people with a love of science and technology and the appetite to make a difference is very rewarding. We are increasing our workforce by over 50% over the next three years, with roles both at our Stoke-on-Trent headquarters and overseas.

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National Apprenticeship Week 2015

WORKFORCE & SKILLS

NAW2015 saw the launch of nine new degree apprenticeships, allowing apprentices to be able to achieve a full bachelor’s or master’s degree while earning and learning for the first time. From September, degree apprenticeships will be offered in key areas including aerospace engineer, nuclear, defence systems engineering, laboratory science and electronic systems engineering.

With more than 2.1million apprenticeships created since 2010, the Government hopes the new industry-backed qualifications will combine the very best of higher and vocational education.

National Apprenticeship Week 2015 rounds up the big stories from the annual celebration of apprenticeships and the positive impact they have on individuals, businesses and the wider economy.

N

ow in its eleventh year, National Apprenticeship Week 2015 (#NAW2015) saw even more employers pledge new places for the next generation, with businesses committing over 23,000 additional traineeships.

Almost 80,000 attended the seventh annual Big Bang Fair at Birmingham’s NEC, with 170 interactive stands and the likes of BAE Systems, Rolls-Royce and Siemens as sponsors. BAE focused on fun physics demonstrations, including super magnets, laser challenges and a gyroscope which rotated at 12,000 revolutions a minute. RollsRoyce’s STEM ambassadors, graduates and apprentices talked about how jet engines work and the brand’s advanced technology; and Siemens offered an insight into running a car production factory, building a human body and the energy requirements of an island.

62 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

Tasha Devey, a 21 year-old trainee with international prepared foods company Bakkavor, has become the 2,000th person to complete an apprenticeship in the UK’s food manufacturing sector during 2014.

Announced by the National Skills Academy for Food & Drink, its figures show that 2014 was a record year for successful apprenticeship completions, continuing an upward trend of more than 7,000 apprenticeships completed over the past five years.

The Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR) has revealed that consumers prefer to do business with firms employing apprentices, due to the perception of contributing to society and providing opportunities for young people.

One in four consumers say they would go so far as even paying more for goods and services offered by apprentice-friendly companies; a factor which could equate to an additional £18bn a year in consumer spending.

CEBR’s research also highlighted that though a typical apprentice delivers productivity gains of more than £10,000 a year, that figure almost doubles to £19,872 for engineering and manufacturing apprentices.

New research by notgoingtouni.co.uk has uncovered that those who undertake an apprenticeship are likely to earn, on average, £3,729 more a year than those who have attended university – in terms of their first job afterwards.

More than 2,600 young British adults were quizzed, with 42% of apprentices citing the biggest benefit of their training was the ability to get hands-on experience while studying.

Only 8% of respondents who completed an apprenticeship wished they had undertaken a degree.

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New STEM learning programme takes off at Duxford A collaboration between the Imperial War Museum Duxford and Boeing has led to Partners in Flight, a new outreach project which aims to counter gaps in technical and engineering skills in the workplace.

P

artners in Flight aims to inspire primary and middle school children to recognise how science, design and technology, computer science, engineering and mathematics can lead to rich and varied career paths by presenting those subjects in an engaging and enthusiastic way.

During the outreach session, children work together to re-assemble a large 1/8 scale model of a Boeing B-29 Superfortress from its component parts. They

er to el togeth n work 18 scale mod childre School mble a largeperfortress. re-asse eing B-29 Su of a Bo

64 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

also participate in STEM challenges, including navigating and calculating routes; measuring optimum air pressure for sustainable human life; balancing fuel and payload, and calculating gun turret firing control.

The project also hopes to inspire primary school STEM teachers to try new and innovative ways of teaching in the classroom, through handson sessions with their classes and Continuing Professional Development Teachers’ Days, which run in conjunction with the National Science Learning Centre Consortium (Central England).

At an exclusive launch event, Sue Chippington, head of the Department for Learning at IWM Duxford told The Manufacturer: “This exciting new programme will show how the science and technology of the past can be used as an educational tool for the future to inspire potential scientists, engineers and mathematicians.”

The Aiming to take triumcomple te p c o the B-29 model urte hant as d mod e sy o f Ru semble l and it pert rs s out to 2,000 Hartl (image ey). children by the end of 2015, Chris Jefferson, IWM Duxford’s STEM learning officer, added: “The challenge for us is to marry history with science.

“Britain has been at the pinnacle of industrial engineering for centuries and that position needs to be maintained. We also need to encourage more women into engineering, with an aim of having 50% of all UK engineering graduates by 2030 to be female.

“We aren’t restricting STEM to the four core subjects (science, technology, engineering, mathematics); the project’s scope involves many other subjects to become cross-curricular and I believe STEM shouldn’t be so rigorously pigeon-holed.”

Snapshots

Greenpower drives practical skills A long running scheme aims to encourage children from a variety of diverse backgrounds to build a race car and engage with STEM skills.

I

t’s the sort of thing we all wish we could’ve done at school, and Greenpower is making it happen.

Ten schools from around London are working to produce a race car to compete at the UK rounds at Battersea Park this summer.

The challenge is to build a working, single-seater race car to inspire

young people and instil the practical skills necessary to pursue a career in engineering, alongside teamwork, negotiation and communication. Students get involved with other aspects too, looking at marketing, budgeting and the various business challenges of getting a product to market.

Mike Hawes, chief executive of SMMT, who hosted a special session where students from Chelsea Academy build a display car at SMMT’s central London headquarters, was enthusiastic about the project.

“This is a great initiative to get young people involved and especially to get them involved in the automotive industry,” Hawes commented. “The SMMT supports the Foy education which

If you want something done right...

What do you do when your college-trained apprentices aren’t quite what you’re after?

Train them yourself.

T

his was exactly the approach County Durham sheet metal product manufacturer, Hydram, took when The Management Team became disillusioned with the “generic” apprentices which were coming out of the local training colleges.

In 2011, The Management Team at Hydram decided that there was little flexibility in their current apprentice recruits.

As Neil Mawson, training and apprentice manager at Hydram explains, the recruits were learning “generics, not specifics”.

The answer? They decided to run their own training centre. “What we managed to do was set up a partnership up with a company to provide our

Skills Funding Agency funding for us, and we are registered with awarding body EAL and fully compliant to deliver its qualifications, as well as now being an IMechE Accredited Apprenticeship provider,” Mr Mawson says.

Members of the inhouse training staff include the operations manager, health and safety manager, welding inspector and CAD engineering design manager, among others.

“We look at who is key in terms of what we’re trying to assess and use that person, because we find we have better results using the experts. This is where the colleges let you down a little,” Neil says.

Mr Mawson agrees that not every business has the capability to follow this training route.

However, he said with a current roster of five first-

WORKFORCE & SKILLS

encourages disadvantaged people to get involved with the automotive industry.

“To meet the challenges of the udents industry in the ar Ten stom fr my’s Ye Acade up of teens ke part a future, we’ve got to e ls e ro Ch o will ta st one g were ju the globe wh get more women and around ompetition people from different in the c socio-economic backgrounds involved today.”Chelsea Academy’s year ten students are just one group of teens from around the globe who will take part in the competition, now in its fifteenth year.

Argentina, Ireland, Poland, Portugal and the USA will all battle one another in the race for the championship.

The scheme strives to engage with a diverse range of students, from all backgrounds in an effort to show the rewards of engineering to those who might not normally be exposed to it. year apprentices going through the centre currently, and having only two apprentices leave the business since its inception, the benefits were overtly apparent.

“The major benefit for us is training bespoke apprentices,” he said. “We’re training our apprentices to be exactly what this company needs them to be. We’ve found that by giving them a six-week placement in every area including the main office and design, they build a better understanding of the overall business.

“We find that we’re far more productive with them because they are actually understanding everything that Appre ntice we need them s at H ydram to do. We are tailoring it exactly to us.

“We had almost 80 applicants last year for the five jobs and interviewed 42. My policy this year will be the same as last year - everyone who met our criteria was offered an interview.”

April 2015 | Issue 3 | Volume 18 | www.themanufacturer.com 65

Big Data

Manufacturing Technologies

Data-driven efficiency

Jonny Williamson talks to Dr Angus Webb, one of several University-based inventors the Royal Academy of Engineering’s Enterprise Hub is supporting to turn their research into start-up companies.

The average heavy goods vehicle consumes almost £42,000 of fuel every year in the UK, leading haulage operators to exist on extremely tight margins

Dr Angus Webb’s start-up, Dynamon, combines vehicle data with dynamic modelling and statistics

T

he average heavy goods vehicle (HGV) consumes almost £42,000 of fuel every year in the UK, leading haulage operators to exist on extremely tight margins, typically between 1% - 3%.

As a result, though most operators are aware of aerodynamics and how its exploitation may improve fuel efficiency, many don’t have the necessary capital to explore the issue further.

Enter University of Southampton’s Dr Angus Webb. During the course of his PhD, Webb travelled the length of the nation to work with UK athletes prior to the 2012 Olympic Games, especially those involved in water sports.

“We conducted a lot of wind tunnel testing where I learnt a great deal about aerodynamics,” he explains. “By spending so much time on the road, I became acutely aware of the HGV industry and realised that our testing could be employed for a higher purpose.”

The issue, says Webb, is that potential improvements will save operators fuel, but the initial cost may outweigh any

66 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

future savings. “The crucial question facing operators is which vehicles should be modified and which shouldn’t. A decision that requires data from each vehicle operating in its real environment being analysed to arrive at an optimised, tailored approach to saving fuel,” explains Webb.

Whether talking about aerodynamics, driver behaviour training, vehicle weight, roof optimisation or another fuel saving improvement, merely implementing a one-size fits all solution and expecting compelling fuel savings is a mistake.

Webb hopes to address this by approaching the problem from a mathematical perspective and developing specific analysis for each potential fuel saving measure. His startup, Dynamon, combines vehicle data with dynamic modelling and statistics to provide tailored recommendation on those improvements that will help operators make the greatest savings.

Dynamon’s products include the fuel-saving calculator, which allows you to predict, based on vehicle use,

the potential future fuel saving of an improvement; and Advanced Telematics, which enables you to accurately measure the effect of a particular improvement on your vehicle.

Webb’s hope is that Dynamon’s service will be very low-cost, with the size of operators benefiting ranging from the largest global haulers right down to the one or two truck family businesses.

The company is already working with Southampton City Council, First Group and Go South Coast, all of which have fitted various fuel saving devices and technologies to their fleets of buses, and Dynamon is providing data analysis.

“We are currently at the interface between prototype and commercial product, so the support the Royal Academy of Engineering’s Enterprise Hub is providing is really important.

It essentially allows me to dedicate 100% of my time for a year to make this company work. Aside from the funding, the mentoring and networking opportunities are invaluable when starting out in business.”

He concludes: “There’s still so much uncertainty about fuel consumption, with the assumption that addressing or improving it would be too difficult. We are using advanced technology, universitylevel research, big data, the cloud and high performance computing to ultimately try and make a difference not just nationally, but internationally.”

PP Electrical Systems

Manufacturing Technologies

Through the roof

A strategic decision to outsource part of its production has helped Ishida Europe double its capacity and achieve significant growth in the process.

T

he company, which has sites in the West Midlands and Poole, turned to PP Electrical Systems to help it ease capacity issues and improve lead times offered to its global customer base.

What started as the supply of electrical harnesses has now been transformed into a long-term partnership, which sees the Walsall-based control and automation specialist oversee the base build of the multi-head food weighers, including building and fitting all associated controls.

These are then delivered to Ishida on a just-in-time (JIT) schedule for the final fit and bespoke configuration before being sent to clients supplying some of the world’s biggest supermarkets.

“We used to try to do as much of the assembly as possible in-house, but that was causing us issues with increased lead times and being able to keep up with demand,” explained John Priest, operations director at Ishida Europe.

“This made us consider our approach to outsourcing and, after we saw what PP Electrical Systems was doing for some of its other customers, we invited the company in to see how it could work with us more strategically.

“Results have been emphatic. We proved the outsourcing arrangement worked with multi-head weighers and then adopted it for other product lines, such as our innovative tray sealing machines.

“The impact of strategic outsourcing and a number of additional activities has delivered growth of 20% year-onyear since 2012. This has enabled us to employ 75 more people, and, in recognition of this achievement, we were awarded the Queens Award for Enterprise – International Trade in 2014.”

PP Electrical Systems is creating an enviable reputation for working with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) looking to replace 100% vertical integration of production by subcontracting out non-core competencies.

Tony Hague, MD of PP Electrical Systems, picked up the story: “Ishida Europe is a great example of how outsourcing can really make a difference to machinery manufacturers.

“We have been providing the high ‘added value’ machine base build solution for more than five years now, gradually working our way up so that we are now involved in numerous variations of multi-head weighers.

“As well as the complex assembly and fit, we also look after the logistics and supply chain management, meaning our customer now deals with one strategic source directly rather than many individual component suppliers and the associated costs that go with managing them.”

He went on to add: “Outsourcing – when the right partner is selected – offers many benefits. It can eliminate

An Ishida multihead weigher machine in production

unnecessary stock and reduction in work in progress, improves cash flow and should improve production throughput times. The latter reduces customer lead times, which in turn can assist in securing new orders.

“Importantly, it can also give you flexibility in capacity and that works equally well when volumes are ‘up’ or ‘down’, reducing the need for costly subcontract labour as a reaction to increased build requirements and, equally, the issue of managing short working hours or some form of ‘lay offs’ in quieter periods.”

A recent example of the partnership evolving has been Ishida successfully securing an order for 40 customised multi-head food weighers into twelve different locations, including Europe, Japan and North America.

This involved ensuring each machine was certified to CE and UL508a standards, a challenge PP Electrical Systems played a major role in meeting.

John concluded: “Outsourcing non-core assembly has been a major success for us and we are keen to move forward with this approach. We’re looking at introducing new model launches over the next twelve months and PP Electrical Systems will be instrumental in that process.”

FURTHER INFO: W: www.powerpanels.uk.com T: 01922 419109 Twitter: @pp_electrical More Details on Ishida Europe can be found at www.ishidaeurope.com April 2015 | Issue 3 | Volume 18 | www.themanufacturer.com 67

MTA Annual Dinner and Awards

Manufacturing Technologies

Guests enjoy the 2015 MTA Annual Dinner and Awards

A toast to technology The Manufacturing Technologies Association (MTA) Annual Dinner and Awards took place last month at a glamorous event at the ICC in Birmingham. was there to capture the highlights.

T

he dinner was attended in force

by MTA member companies, that were welcomed to the evening by outgoing MTA President C. Mark Ridgway OBE DL. Mr Ridgway used his address to highlight the momentum that UK manufacturing has gained since the recession and called for more sustained support from Government.

“If you want to address the trade deficit, you need manufacturing. If you

It is essential that we use this favourable political environment to our advantage. Not just to manufacture our products, our technologies, our services - but to manufacture momentum

68 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

want to rebalance the economy towards the regions, you need manufacturing.

If you want a strong and innovative science and technology base, you need manufacturing. And if you want an economy capable of delivering strong public services - yes - you need manufacturing,” Mr Ridgway said.

“We have seen real progress in a host of areas such as tax and innovation, and new targeted interventions such as the Employer Ownership of Skills programme are addressing the need for smart, industry led, regional skills initiatives.

“It is essential that we use this favourable political environment to our advantage. Not just to manufacture our products, our technologies, our services - but to manufacture momentum.”

Following Mr Ridgway’s passionate speech, the evening saw the MTA Presidency handed over to Guy Mollart who said: “I am honoured to serve as MTA President and return something to

Guy Mollart (left) takes over the presidency from Mark Ridgway

the industry that my company, Mollart Engineering has so much been a part of over the past 80 years.”

Attention then turned to the 2015 Manufacturing Industry Awards. These prestigious and hotly contested awards saw companies and individuals recognised for their outstanding achievements.

The Best Supplier Partnership category was awarded to metrology software products Ltd and Renishaw Plc. The expert panel of judges felt that a large innovative company choosing a small partner gave huge credibility to their offer and entry.

Best Training Scheme was won by Yamazaki Mazak UK, the judges felt the firm was an exemplar within the industry, due to its commitment to the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) work it carries out and its high level of engagement with schools.

Scott Gullick, PP Electrical Systems scooped the Young Engineer of the Year Award. Scott impressed the judges with his aptitude, self-starting attitude and his ability to show initiative.

MTA CEO James Selka said of the evening: “The MTA is all about its members and it is a real privilege to have so many of them with us to share this evening. I would like to take this opportunity to thank outgoing President Mark Ridgway for his continued dedication to the MTA and I’d also like to welcome incoming President Guy Mollart, who I look forward to working closely with in the coming years.”

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This year’s 3D Printing and Additive Manufacturing Conference is streamed, helping you understand the different technologies, materials and applications available. Hear from leading manufacturers, including BAE Systems, Airbus and JRI Orthopaedics, about the challenges, benefits and ultimately opportunities advanced technology can bring. Whether you’re looking to streamline your existing manufacturing processes through additive manufacturing, or use rapid prototyping to speed up your design procedures, this event has something for everyone.

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The future of workplaces and cities Syed Ahmed, Founder and CEO of Savortex explains how UK businesses can harness data and a smart service model to reduce waste and boost profitability.

U

K businesses could save £23bn per year by improving the way they use resources and interact with their business premises, furthermore the built environment accounts for around 33% of waste, and 47% of UK greenhouse gas emissions.

What’s just as alarming is that 30% - 50% of the energy in buildings is wasted. In my opinion, smart energy management is the most dynamic segment of the building technologies and services industry.

Savortex is an Innovate UK funded, multi-award winning British Eco Technology and Internet of Things (IoT) Company.

We have found that hidden risks in buildings such as energy and waste can be identified and turned into profitability through smart technology that produces actionable data.

£23bn The amount of money Uk businesses could save per year by improving the way they use resources and interact with their business premises

of energy in buildings is wasted

70 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

Syed Ahmed – Entrepreneur Since appearing on the second series of BBC’s The Apprentice, Syed has successfully built several businesses and served as board member and non-exec director positions. He is now cofounder and managing director of SAVORTEX Ltd, a dynamic technology company that has pioneered the world’s first Intelligent and economical hand drying products, for use at home or work, which digitally report on real-time usage data. Syed founded the company in 2006 when he met inspiring product engineer Peter Williams and after three years of research and development, building several prototypes.

SAVORTEX is a multi-award winning, British eco technology company that has pioneered innovative technology to create eco-friendly hand dryers, that do a lot more than just dry hands. The company, which designs and manufactures these state-of-the-art products, serves some of the world’s leading brands that value sustainability, such as British Airways, Marriott Hotels, Everything Everywhere, the Royal Bank of Scotland, and many more.

Find out more at http://bit.ly/SyedAhmed

You can’t manage what you can’t measure and it is vital to improving the way buildings are operated by unlocking potential savings, whether that’s in terms of cash, carbon or waste. The challenge is knowing what areas of a building to target and how to use the data.

Washrooms make a compelling starting point for any organisation. There are around 70 million around the world; around 20% use ‘energy-hungry’ hand dryers; and the average person uses up to 3,000 paper towels drying their hands at work each year.

At Savortex, we are using a cognitive platform with big data to offer servitisation, data intelligence, trend analysis for our sustainability focused clients helping them improve resource efficiency, encouraging collaboration and cross-functional, continuous conversations between stakeholders. All of this results in profit-boosting insights through faster problem resolution and a significant reduction in cost, waste and energy.

For example, one of our clients stands to save £35,000, 2.7 tonnes of CO2, 3.3 tonnes of waste and 1,938,209 paper towel sheets per year in just one building alone by using our products and data platform.

Understanding how to harvest data will enhance performance and wellbeing, reduce costs and resource consumption, engage energy management effectively within the built environment and deliver opportunities to monetise the data being collected introducing profitability in our businesses and economy.

Savortex

Manufacturing SERVICES

sits down with the founder of Savortex, the data-driven company behind one of the most energy efficient handdriers on the planet.

How exactly did Savortex get started?

The business was founded in 2006 in a little shed in Bedfordshire where I teamed up with a highly qualified motor specialist engineer. He invented what’s defined as the most eco-friendly, low energy, brushless motor technology, which forms the heart of our drier.

We now run a very lean setup where we outsource certain functions of the business to suppliers to help encourage a local supply chain. We’re the only British eco hand drier technology manufacturer, with Dyson now based in Malaysia. Our subcontracted facility is based in Wiltshire and that’s the core part of our business. Our subcontracted service providing partner is also a major shareholder in Savortex, so we are working servitisation into our process.

Our subcontracted manufacturer is not only providing us with a built, tested product, it also comes with a service which is the long term feedback back into the business.

Despite the innovative, environmental changes you’ve made, it’s not so much the physical product that changes as much as how it is being utilised?

That’s right. Our first USP back in 2006 was to make sure the hand dryer was the most cost and energy efficient on the planet. Our second objective was to add the data element in. The data element didn’t come in until four years later when I approached the Technology Strategy Board (now Innovate UK).

In buildings you have the most constant part being that they have floors. In each floor there are a number of washrooms. The most influential element in the building - the people - are going to that washroom two to three times a day. So that’s our opportunity to monitor behaviour and the heat map of a building.

TSB liked the idea and funded the project, which we embarked on with Leeds University and a bunch of engineers. This is when we began trialling the sensors built into the hand dryer. We created the sensors and data boards and began integrating a service model built into the hand dryer that goes far beyond drying hands.

And this is where servitisation comes into it.

What did you learn from this experience?

What we learned from a commercial point of view is that if we can show clients a heat map of their building, then they can use that to actually start turning certain washrooms off and certain floors off based on certain days based on occupancy. What that data point allows is the transparency to see exactly how many hands you’re drying and how many people are going in and out of the washroom. If you’ve got that kind of data you can start making all sorts of intelligent decisions to help drive savings while improving resource efficiency.

What we’ve created is remote washroom maintenance in the cloud. The data is now showing all

Our first USP back in 2006 was to make sure the hand dryer was the most cost and energy efficient on the planet. Our second objective was to add the data element in

stakeholders, including cleaners and service providers, exactly what’s going on with the building. Everything is monitored online, there are alerts sent to the cleaners, the cleaner cleans and then has to email back the alert to say the work has been done.

Have you actually begun to measure the benefits from some of your clients?

Basically what we’re encouraging is cross conversation and profit-boosting insights into your building. For example RBS now uses the data from our dryers to make savings of about £35,000, 2.7 tonnes of CO2, 14 tonnes of waste and 1.9 million paper towel sheets in about two and a half months of using this data. That’s what they also stand to save throughout the rest of the year. This is the data that’s been reported back from our data driers in one building in London in one year. If you then add on the resource efficiency savings which we are currently looking at to be around six - 10%, because soon they won’t need the large teams of cleaners going around cleaning all of their washrooms.

Do you plan to take this model outside of washrooms?

The whole model around being an Internet of Things company is because we’re using the internet, data and the cloud to build in a servitisation model in that we’re not just selling a product, but we’re selling a service. First it’s the the smart washroom, then it’s the smarter building and the third is to service smarter cities. That’s the bigger picture.

April 2015 | Issue 3 | Volume 18 | www.themanufacturer.com 71

Aston Business School

Manufacturing SERVICES

A different approach M

What are some of the key benefits in taking on a service model?

Tim Baines of Aston Business School finds out and reveals which firms are already seeing the results.

anufacturing and service industries are often seen as largely independent.

Yet manufacturers can base their competitive strategies on services, and the process through which this is achieved is commonly known as servitisation.

Servitisation is a process of business model and organisational transformation, and implicitly is targeted at manufacturers that currently focus their business on products and production.

Icons in this world are companies such as Rolls-Royce Aerospace with powerby-the-hour, Xerox with document management, and Alstom with Trainlife services. These are all examples of “advanced services” incorporating maintenance, repair and overhaul contracts where revenue generation is directly linked to asset availability, reliability and performance.

Improved customer intimacy underpins servitisation. In the traditional

world of production, products were designed and made, then placed in a showroom in anticipation of a sales transaction. Designs were informed by analysis of customer trends, innovation was centred around product features, and satisfaction was recorded by aftersales surveys.

To manufacturers in this world “service” meant fulfilment of orders on time, and to cost; customers were relatively remote. But this changes with servitisation.

Servitisation promotes intense customer relationships. With advanced services in particular, the focus

Servitisation is a process of business model and organisational transformation, and implicitly is targeted at manufacturers that currently focus their business on products and production

72 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 2| Volume 18

is the customer’s own business processes, and the manufacturer provides offerings that target its efficient and effective delivery. Offerings manifest typically as 10-year service contracts, where the manufacturer takes some responsibility (or risk) for fulfilment, and is paid as the capability it offers is consumed. One such consumer of an advanced service is Hoyer, a German logistics company with a base in Yorkshire. Hoyer use the manufacturer MAN’s trucks on a pay-as-you-go basis. Costs are based on “per mile driven” and this helps to ensure that the customer only incurs expense when it is generating revenue.

Such servitisation demands an organisational transformation for traditional manufacturers. To deliver such a contract successfully requires many things of the manufacturer. It must: operate facilities that are co-located and distributed throughout customers’ operations and integrated within their supply chains; be responsive and innovative; be staffed by personnel with humanistic skills-sets; have business processes that integrate with the customer’s own operations; be supported by Information and Communication Technologies that enable remote product monitoring; work to performance measures that reflect outcomes aligned to individual customers, and are cascaded down into various forms throughout the service delivery system.

This organisational transformation is demanding. Yet, the successful development and delivery of such advanced services rewards the manufacturer with: improved commercial resilience; the ability to respond to customer demands; a way to prevent competitors from gaining a foothold in the market; improved customer intimacy leading to opportunities for new services.

The customer is similarly rewarded, with reduced financial risk and improved asset management as well as improved focus and investment.

The commercial benefits of servitisation are convincing yet, arguably, servitisation is still in its infancy. We have many leading examples in the UK, but many of our manufacturers are yet to wake up to the potential of this phenomenon.

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Columbus

Manufacturing SERVICES

Driving manufacturing servitisation Simon Charlton, Sales Director at Columbus, weighs in on why technology needs to be the main driver for manufacturing servitisation.

A

s the UK manufacturing industry continues to struggle to keep up with cost reductions offered by overseas competition, businesses in the sector are being forced to innovate in order to add value to customers and remain competitive. For many, this means service innovation, diversifying services to include consulting, design and development or aftersales support; anything that helps the customer improve their own competitiveness, rather than just engaging in a single transaction through the sale of a product or single service.

But this transition to services is rarely straightforward, and adding services can often result in additional costs, forcing manufacturers to investigate new service models in order to make the transition.

This is where advancements in digital

Business technology is already playing a large role in manufacturing servitisation, and as OEMs and SMEs in the sector continue to change their business models to better accommodate customers

74 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

technology are aiding manufacturers, enabling them to learn from the consumer-orientated service industry and move from a reactive sector, to a proactive sector, with a constant 360° view of the customer.

With this model, technology becomes a major advantage to manufacturing, and its key suppliers. By allowing technology a larger role in value-added services, and embracing servitisation, businesses are being able to maximise their share of the customer wallet, while also providing added value to make sure their customers are more competitive.

Take Capital Document Solutions as an example. Scotland’s largest supplier and service provider of office equipment and document solutions is utilising Microsoft Dynamics AX technology to increase its field service orders, and deliver an end-to-end solution to its customers. By integrating three disparate systems the company is now able to manage every aspect of its business from one place. This means the company’s service works controllers have access to the same information as those working on the helpdesk, so each stage of every work order can be seen by everyone in the business.

When it comes to field service engineering and servicing of parts, the help desk is now often able to resolve an issue without sending out an engineer, saving the business time and money,

and its customers too. It also means when a customer does require an engineer site visit, they receive a quicker and more efficient, dedicated service; boosting customer service but without higher margins for the company to contend with on a daily basis.

Business technology is already playing a large role in manufacturing servitisation, and as OEMs and SMEs in the sector continue to change their business models to better accommodate customers and build long-term relationships, other uses for implementing digital technologies to industrial manufacturing are being recognised.

Analytics and Big Data are being used industry-wide to derive predictive insights from unstructured data, which can then be used to provide value-added services and drive process improvement.

For example, seating manufacturer Orangebox realised that its existing legacy business system was unable to provide the company with accurate reports on its delivery performance and flexibility, restricting the company from expanding its service offering to customers. In order to utilise Big Data and analytics more effectively, the business updated its legacy systems and is now able to track the progress of each order and capture the moment of delivery to trigger automatic invoicing, meaning that it can respond to customers more efficiently and reduce errors in the invoicing process.

These are just small changes that contribute to implementing a next-generation service model for manufacturers but by utilising technology as the key driver for change, businesses can go a long way to improving their overall service levels to customers. The service model a manufacturing business adopts should align customer needs and expectations with its existing strategies for maximum efficiency. It should drive innovation and lean on technology to facilitate the transition to a customer-focused business model, adopting industry best practices to drive the service flow through the value stream.

The opportunities digital technology is providing to manufacturers is facilitating an easy transition to a next generation service model and enabling manufacturing companies to remain competitive globally, even when they can’t afford to quote the lowest price.

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2015

Microsoft Dynamics

IT in Manufacturing

Going to the next level For manufacturers, it’s no longer just about building digital connections. These days, those connections must be intelligent and actionable, Microsoft’s Colin Masson tells IT contributing editor Malcolm Wheatley.

W

ith its extensive range of business applications among them Microsoft Dynamics AX, NAV and CRM, Microsoft Office, Azure, Yammer and Skype for Business (formerly Lync) - it’s immediately obvious that Microsoft’s vision of the future is one that is going to beneficially impact most manufacturers.

And with Convergence 2015 Microsoft’s annual conference for its business customers - having taken place in Atlanta in March, it has become clearer how Microsoft sees its technology road map meshing with manufacturers’ own perennial drive to work more efficiently and effectively right across their operations.

Specifically, the impetus is to add intelligence to business processes: providing a platform to address everything

CxOs Top of Mind in 2015

from intelligent customer engagement, right through to intelligent manufacturing and distribution operations.

“Businesses are hungry to seize new opportunities using technologies like machine learning and predictive analytics,” stressed Microsoft’s chief executive Satya Nadella in a keynote presentation at Convergence 2015 to showcase new products and services built by Microsoft to empower businesses and individuals to derive insight and action from their data. “Only when businesses create a culture that empowers everyone to have access to data and insight that drive action will they be positioned to truly transform.”

And right at the heart of the action in Atlanta, busily briefing analysts and giving customer presentations, was Microsoft’s global industry director for manufacturing and distribution, Colin Masson, who highlighted what manufacturers should be looking out for as the new tools and technologies announced at Convergence make their way through Microsoft’s sales and marketing channels in the weeks and months ahead.

“The Spring 2015 release of Microsoft Dynamics CRM will take intelligent customer engagement to the next level, delivering significant performance enhancements, deepening its interoperability with Office 365, and offering new knowledge management enhancements to improve efficiency and collaboration between workers and businesses,” he told The Manufacturer.

“On the Internet of Things front, we’re bringing together a variety of Azure services within our new Azure IoT Suite to help our customers accelerate their transformation to digital businesses using smart connected products. Available in preview later this year, it will provide manufacturers with finished applications targeting common Internet of Things scenarios, such as remote monitoring, asset management and predictive maintenance.

“Meanwhile, Office Delve is a prime example of how Microsoft is reimagining productivity to help people work in new and more connected ways. Delve is an experience within Office 365 that surfaces relevant content and insights tailored to each person. It is powered by the Office Graph, an intelligent fabric that applies machine learning to map the connections and interactions between people and content that occur across Office 365.”

Taken together, sums up Masson, Microsoft’s latest capabilities and applications will increase the clear blue water that separates the company from some of its competitors.

“Everyone else is talking about ‘being connected’.

But we’ve been doing that for years. What we’re now working towards is adding intelligence to those connections – using our technologies to add business context and create intelligent customer engagement and intelligent operations, that are personalised, predictive and proactive.”

FURTHER INFO: Explore some of the exciting insights from Convergence 2015 into Microsoft technologies at: www.microsoft.com/ en/convergence/ atlanta15/#fbid=y_ btWBH4jiE

76 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

ENABLING YOU TO CREATE YOUR PATH THROUGH THE FINANCIAL LANDSCAPE

FR placeEE subsc s for ribers !

Full te apply rms and con and ditions thema can be vie w nufac turer.c ed at unloc om king-fi nance /

UNLOCKING FINANCE 10 June 2015 | London @TheManufacturer @TM_EventsTeam #TMFinance Book now: 020 7401 6033 (Opt. 3) events@hennikgroup.com

As SME optimism remains throughout the manufacturing sector, there have been few better opportunities to obtain investment for your business than now. Yet, with the myriad of funding options available in the market, choosing the best strategy remains a challenging task for smaller sized businesses.

Unlocking Finance will examine the current financial landscape in manufacturing, by looking at the re-emergence of Asset Based Finance, the hotly-tipped Alternative Finance sector via the world’s largest (non-property related) crowd-funded loan, as well as several other key areas.

Cut through the noise, meet with key financial decision makers, and find the right solutions tailored to your business development needs.

Visit: themanufacturer.com/unlocking-finance Researched and delivered by

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Exel

IT in Manufacturing

A system for success F

amily owned and run since 1947, MRT Castings is a highly successful and rapidly growing foundry business. Unlike traditional foundries, MRT offers a variety of casting processes from sand and gravity die castings through to complex high pressure castings for order sizes ranging in batches from between 5 and 50,000.

Over the last 10 years, MRT has grown, diversified and become more adaptable to its market. Exel and EFACS E/8 have supported us by providing the data and systems required to achieve this

78 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

Foundry business, MRT Castings, shares how it upgraded its in-house green screen system to keep up with the firm’s growth and diversification.

Managing director Phil Rawnson explains the many challenges facing the business. “We have a huge variety in the nature and size of orders. This is compounded by the range of complexity involved, from 2 to 30+ process steps, which can see a given casting resource tied up for anything between 2 hours and 2 weeks.”

In addition to the resulting scheduling complications the company has to deal with the unknowns inherent in the very nature of casting itself. Further challenges come in the form of optimising set-up times, managing incoming/ outgoing subcontracted orders, tools which wear at different rates, as well as routine and unpredicted maintenance.

MRT’s 20 year old, in-house green screen system couldn’t keep up with the company’s growth and diversification which, when coupled with increasing customer demand for greater traceability, quality control and responsiveness, led to a visit to a trade show, a review of several systems and a quick, positive decision for EFACS E/8.

“In the end, only EFACS E/8 offered us the flexibility and customisation that

we were looking for,” explains Phil.

“Everything else would have required us having to change our processes to fit a prescribed way of working and that simply wasn’t an option for us.”

Central to the many benefits already achieved are the increased visibility and increased capacity utilisation across the entire business. “Real-time data is now accessible to every team member, wherever they need it and at the level they require,” comments Phil. Now not only can the impact of taking on a new order be seen at a production planning and scheduling level, EFACS E/8 can also help determine the competitive advantage of potentially investing in a new plant asset and/or taking on additional staff.

At the heart of delivering this visibility is the implementation of touchscreen/ barcoding hardware throughout the shopfloor and integrating this with EFACS E/8. This has removed a huge paper trail from the shopfloor as well as the potential data duplication/variation issues inherent in previous manual paper systems. It has also made it possible to track and know the location of every order, even when this is physically split at different locations across the business which is especially important for more complex orders involving different subassemblies and bought-in components.

The cumulative benefit is that in the last year alone, MRT has doubled output with a much smaller increase in resources while reducing lead times by 30% and achieving an overall reduction in its time to market for new products.

“Looking forward,” says Phil, “we expect to see even faster change and greater pressures and we have every confidence that the scalability and flexibility of EFACS E/8 will help us meet and overcome these challenges.

2015

Various UK locations

FACTORY TOURS

OPENING THE DOORS FOR BRITISH MANUFACTURING

@TheManufacturer @TM_EventsTeam #TMFactoryTours Book now: 020 7401 6033 (Opt 3) events@hennikgroup.com

Unique information-packed factory tours showcasing the best practices of UK manufacturers. Each visit will include insightful presentations by senior management, a shop-floor factory tour and a Q+A/feedback session.

Attending our factory tours will: • Allow you to gain insight into other UK factories and add to your own continuous improvement strategy • Help highlight the diversity of British manufacturing and push your sector to the forefront of British industry • Provide a platform for furthering your knowledge and inspiration for your own manufacturing projects • Gain insight into the employee engagement strategies of other companies, enabling you to apply this to your own programme For more information on upcoming tours or if you would like to become a host site please contact e.bailey@hennikgroup.com

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Terry Scuoler - EEF

TALK OF THE INDUSTRY

For employers and learners alike, degree apprenticeships are a no brainer

No time to tinker Terry Scuoler reflects on how the future workforce is key to growth and prosperity in the sector.

I

f there is one message I constantly hear when I visit manufacturing companies, and one, which I constantly translate in Westminster and Whitehall, it is the need to develop a world-class workforce of the future.

I reiterate at every opportunity that economically valuable industries such as manufacturing can only grow and prosper if highly skilled and talented employees are available to recruit and train.

But I am also aware it is not just Government that has a role to play.

Manufacturers themselves need to increase investment in training in order to keep up with new processes and to recruit highly skilled employees who have more than the somewhat traditional technical competences and generic skills required in the past.

80 www.themanufacturer.com | April 2015 | Issue 3| Volume 18

To date, there has been a noticeable gap in higherlevel provision combining both vocational and academic learning to the level demanded by fastmoving evolving sectors such as engineering. The recent announcement by the Prime Minister David Cameron to roll out degree apprenticeships is a welcome opportunity to fill the gap and is one which EEF very much supports.

Employers are increasingly demanding a mix of vocational and academic prowess from prospective candidates and we are beginning to see a shift away from graduate recruitment towards advanced and higher apprentices to match key skills gaps. We now need to go further and focus on NVQ skill level 6 and above, which has traditionally been associated with Bachelor level degrees.

For employers and learners alike, degree apprenticeships are a no brainer. Learners earn while they learn to do a degree.

They also have the security that their host employer will become their future permanent employer.

Indeed three-quarters of manufacturers report that all their apprentices remain with them permanently after completing their training.

Employers also have access to relevant, responsive, quality provision.

For too long, manufacturers have been left frustrated that they cannot demand the provision they need. The reforms to apprenticeships following the publication of the Richard Review have moved us in the right direction.

Standards designed and developed by employers, a stronger focus on quality and the final piece of the jigsaw – giving employers control of the funding.

In the new world of apprenticeships where employers are firmly in the driving seat, degree apprenticeships will give employers even more control and encourage greater ambition. They will give the opportunity to co-design degree apprenticeships and, the purchasing power to buy training provision from their desired institution. It is clear to see that this is an opportunity not to be missed and that’s why we are calling on employers in our sector to step up to the plate and take this agenda forward.

Furthermore, our final call, as the general election fast approaches, is for the next government, of whatever colour, to recognise that initiatives that involve education institutions, employers and government such as degree apprenticeships, need long timecommitment and significant investment in time to succeed. Now that we have degree apprenticeships in place, let’s give them time to make their mark and resist temptation to tinker.

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