Editor’s View

Happy New Year. Well let’s hope it is anyway. So what has changed? Well for one thing fuel costs and inflation have come off the boil –although if you are using a lot of electricity it will still be pushing down on profitability. Some of the supply chain issues seem to have eased a bit, and there are signs of healthy activity in areas such as aerospace, the energy sector and medical.

In fact, there even seems to be a shortage of 5-axis subcontract capacity at the moment – see article on Yamazaki Mazak on page 16. That article came after a visit to Mazak’s impressive manufacturing facility in Worcester.

One theme that came up on the visit, and seems to be a constant, is the problem of recruiting skilled staff. As ever there are basically three ways of addressing this: grow your own, use somebody else’s or make the most of what you’ve got.

Companies like Mazak already put a lot of effort into ‘growing their own’ skilled workers of the future – and there are opportunities to make your own effort here by embracing and engaging with the new T Level qualifications – see article on page 30.

The second approach, using somebody else’s skills, is what subcontracting is all about, and why the market is relatively healthy at the moment.

The final route, making the most of what you’ve got, implies using automation to take the drudgework off your team so they can get on with more value adding activities, and using smart technology, such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), to digitally upskill your operators.

Apparently the latest thing in AI is something called ChatGPT which can write intelligent articles based on a few simple inputs. Let me know when you spot the difference.

Andy Sandford, Editor

Made in Britain and the British Design Fund have launched a joint initiative to champion manufacturing innovation, collaboration and growth in 2023.

The initiative will kick off in January 2023 with the launch of a series of joint webinars for Made in Britain members.

The British Design Fund (BDF) is the only fund in the UK that invests exclusively in early-stage product design and manufacturing businesses. With a mission to boost homegrown enterprise and innovation, the BDF works with these British start-ups – providing a range of support, including mentorship –to scale their products, accelerate growth and build long term value for both investors and business owners.

Made in Britain brings together British SME manufacturers united by the licensed use of the Made in Britain registered, collective mark. Additionally, member companies receive support across exports, sales, marketing and PR; feature in a public, searchable product directory showcasing British-made goods; and enjoy access to the organisation’s Green Growth sustainability programme.

The UK manufacturing sector has an annual output of £183 billion and employs 2.5 million people – while the design economy is growing at twice the UK average, contributing £97.4bn in GVA to the UK economy and providing employment to 1.97 million people.