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Technology integral to manufacturing challenges

The government has set out its plans to support UK manufacturing, including new investment and support for technology-led development.

By Miya Knights, 9 Sep 2008 at 13:11

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The government has put technology high up its list of priorities for the manufacturing sector.

The 2008 Manufacturing Review published jointly today by the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) and the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR), has identified technology as one of the major dynamics shaping global manufacturing.

It said UK manufacturing must develop to respond to the increasing complexity of global value chains, which are underpinned by IT developments that consequently fragment processes and encourage specialisation. The UK must respond to “the accelerated pace of technology exploitation as the pace and demand for change in implementation has increased,” it added.

In response, the review announced that UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) will fund a package of new support for 600 UK companies of varying sizes to identify manufacturing value chain opportunities in India and China. And the UK Intellectual Property Office (UK-IPO) will advise on using and protecting IP in these markets.

In addition to the existing centre in Yorkshire and the centre currently being built in Glasgow, the review announced a new Manufacturing Technology Centre will be built in Coventry. It will have industrial scale pre-production and demonstration facilities, which the review said could lead to £130-million of investment in business-led applied research and its exploitation over the next 10 years.

And the Technology Strategy Board will invest £24 million into research, central to high value added manufacturing to complement investment plans to boost skills development as well.

To this end, skills secretary John Denham also announced plans to make it easier for manufacturing employers to access skills support and extend the number of apprenticeships available by supporting firms in training additional apprentices.

“We want to support innovation in UK manufacturing by maintaining a world-class research and development infrastructure, through intelligent use of government procurement and regulation to stimulate markets and the growth of innovative business, and to build world-class skills,” he stated.