UK manufacturing has more positives than reported

A Metalforming Machinery Makers Association product story

Edited by the Engineeringtalk editorial team Apr 4, 2005

Mike Hall, Chairman of the Metalforming Machinery Makers' Association (MMMA) is more positive about the UK economy.

Mike Hall, Chairman of the Metalforming Machinery Makers' Association (MMMA) is more positive about the UK economy, not only from what he reads and hears about the market, but from his own observations.

He said: "It is disappointing to read that according to end of year 2004 statistics there were 104,000 less people employed in manufacturing than at the same time in 2003 and yet on the positive front, the UK economy is reported to have grown by 3.1 per cent over the same period.

This is incidentally the best growth rate since 2000.

My business is and always has been in metalforming, or metal bashing as we used to say, and it saddens me that manufacturing is now such a small part of the UK economy.

I have read that the service industry sector now accounts for three quarters of the UK economy and is still continuing to grow, by one per cent in the last quarter of 2004.

Manufacturing has been part of me for longer than I choose to say and I am glad I have played my small part in helping the UK economy." He continued by commenting that not all is gloom as some people have made out, and added: "As we all know the manufacturing sector does cover a wide range of industries from quarrying and mining to manufacturing products made from steel.

It is good to see that the latter has a healthier outlook for 2005 and I tend to agree with that.

I have read that a number of regions are reporting an increase in business confidence underlined by a combination of increasing capital expenditure and the number of people employed in manufacturing levelling off.

"When I travel around the UK, I am finding exactly that, with many companies having worked extremely hard to become more competitive and that they have partly done so by investing in the latest production machinery.

They also keep telling me that they intend to become even more competivitive.

The UK manufacturing industry competes against lower cost regions around the world and it is the quality of our output that keeps us in good stead and will continue to do so.

I believe that output will increase in the future and that as a whole UK industry has now adapted to meet the global challenges and those who have done so, have definitely found a very valuable niche in the market place.

Hall went on to highlight the UK car manufacturing sector, and commented: "We continually read about the demise of UK car manufacturing, yet hidden behind the headlines are success stories.

Like Toyota and BMW, both increasing the number of cars they produce in the UK.

In fact, I have read that BMW are investing over GBP 100m in the next two years and increasing production by about 20 per cent, whilst Toyota is stepping up-production to around 285,000 vehicles a year at Burnaston.

That has a knock on effect at Toyota's engine plant near Chester, which in fact exports engine parts to other Toyota plants around the world.

That must be good news and we should expect to see UK sub-contractors get more business and, ultimately, the machine tool suppliers as the sub-contractors invest to meet the new production levels.

However, do not forget the car manufacturers, who are continually looking at new production machinery.

Yes, we still have a car manufacturing industry - Toyota, Nissan, Honda, BMW, Peugeot, GM Vauxhall and Rover.

Yes, they are all owned or about to be owned by overseas corporations, yet they are still manufacturing cars in increasing volumes in the UK." In terms of the overall UK economy Hall drew attention to export and import levels, and said: "It would be nice to see us export more goods, because at present we import more that we export.

Yet even here there is some good news.

Last November the gap between imports and exports narrowed, helped by a 7.5 per cent rise in export outside the EU, with growth across a number of manufacturing sectors, including cars (we do export cars).

The latest statistics show that manufacturing output has risen at it fastest level since last May.

"So with exports improving, manufacturing output rising and investment in new production equipment on the cards, I feel we should all be that little more positive as we progress into 2005," concluded Hall.