Make UK

British manufacturing companies moved at speed towards digitalisation when the pandemic struck, with nearly half switching to digital working practices within two weeks of lockdown, according to new research, ‘Digital Skills for a Digital Manufacturing Future’, published by Make UK, the manufacturers’ organisation and Sage. 

The critical importance of avoiding barriers to trade between the UK and the EU is highlighted today by new analysis which shows that manufacturing exports to the top six EU markets alone are worth around a third of total goods exports.

Britain’s manufacturers have warned that some of the UK’s most economically deprived regions and so-called ‘red wall’ constituencies are at risk of a triple whammy hit to their economies in the event a comprehensive new relationship with the EU is not concluded by December. This is according to new analysis of regional manufacturing performance published today by Make UK, the manufacturers' organisation and business advisory firm, BDO LLP.

Britain’s manufacturing industry is urging the Chancellor to pull every financial lever at his disposal in his forthcoming Summer Statement and put Industry, skills and job creation at the forefront of plans to rebuild the economy with skills, green and digital technologies at its heart. The call by Make UK in its submission to the Treasury comes on the back of data from its latest Manufacturing Monitor survey showing the number of companies planning to make redundancies in the next six months has jumped from a quarter at the end of May to 42%.

One major question for organisations dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic was how do you maintain safe, healthy, effective operations and develop your people without face-to-face training sessions? Collaborative work by Make UK, Fujitsu UK and IOSH has been delivering new learning experiences online to help firms sustain business continuity through the coronavirus crisis and recover.

Forecasts reveal it will take until 2022 for manufacturing to recover to its pre-COVID-19 growth track, while it could cost a potential £36bn in Gross Added Value this year alone, according to a major report published today by Make UK and Santander UK. In normal circumstances Make UK’s forecast for GVA was £185bn but the worst case scenario and a slow recovery sees this fall to £149bn.

To mark this year’s International Women in Engineering Day (June 23rd), Dame Judith Hackitt, Chair of Make UK, the manufacturers’ organisation, is calling on female engineers across the UK to join its diverse and talented intake of apprentices, to meet the ongoing challenges that both the sector and UK now face.

Now in its 12th year, the Make UK awards acknowledge and reward the extraordinary work of the UK manufacturing sector. The 2020 Make UK Awards seek to recognise leading lights within the manufacturing industry, looking for those apprentices and businesses that have made significant contributions across the industry.

Britain’s manufacturers are calling for a National Recovery Plan, including an immediate stimulus package, to boost investment and help save jobs on the back of a major survey showing that output in the sector plunged to a record low as the full impact of the crisis hit home.

Make UK is highlighting the case for Government to help manufacturing recover from COVID-19 by implementing a new scrappage scheme for old IT, plant and machinery equipment to incentivise cash-strapped firms to invest in automation and digitisation to boost output and exports.

Make UK, the manufacturers’ organisation, has developed a new online suite of services to help manufacturers with the challenges of preparing to bring their workforce back to work post COVID-19. It provides the essential support needed for businesses to take fast, effective action and make the right decisions around government initiatives such as the job retention scheme.

Britain’s manufacturers have become increasingly pessimistic about a return to normal trading conditions, with the number believing that it will take more than twelve months to return doubling in the last two weeks.

After several successful IOSH Managing Safely courses run in its virtual classroom for a major customer, Make UK can now offer the same benefits to employees, working from home or furloughed during the COVID-19 lockdown.

Stark statistics from the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) warn that Britain’s manufacturing sector will take one of the biggest COVID-19 hits financially across UK industry with output expected to fall by 55% in the second quarter of this year.

Britain’s manufacturers have experienced a collapse in demand as the impact of the global lockdown due to coronavirus hammers home with a warning that conditions are unlikely to return to anywhere near normal for some time, according a new survey published by Make UK, the manufacturers’ organisation.

Make UK has expanded its online training and learning services for companies to ensure that manufacturers are able to pivot their business to operating through the COVID-19 crisis and, in particular, to safeguard the future of their workforces now and in the future.

Britain’s manufacturers are backing the new Government’s aim of driving growth more evenly across all UK regions, with the results of a survey showing that performance in manufacturing continues to diverge across the UK. According to the Regional Manufacturing Outlook survey for 2019 Q4, published by Make UK and business and advisory firm BDO LLP, industry in London and the South East is booming, with growth indicators far outstripping any other UK region in five out of six survey indicators, in most cases by a substantial margin.

Britain’s manufacturers are calling for an urgent rethink to Government’s Apprenticeship Levy to make access to funding more flexible so that industry can develop the essential skills of the future. The call comes on the back of a report by Make UK, An Unlevy playing field for manufacturers, which reveals that 95% of manufacturers want to see the Apprenticeship Levy changed and just 5% happy with the current system. This figure has not changed from a year ago, showing that manufacturers’ frustrations remain strong.

Britain’s manufacturers are urging the Government to work more closely with business on new reforms to technical education or, risk repeating the same mistakes over the introduction of the Apprenticeship Levy which was rushed in without proper consultation.

Labour turnover in manufacturing has increased for the second year in succession as employees take advantage of a buoyant jobs market and skills shortages to move jobs according to the latest annual Labour Turnover survey from Make UK, the manufacturers’ organisation.