MTA vows to continue promoting UK engineering excellence

THE MANUFACTURING Technologies Association has represented the interests of the UK's engineering-based manufacturers for more than one hundred years and during that time has stood by the industry through some challenging periods, offering help and solutions when they are needed most.

We are currently entrenched in just such a period and therefore, the MTA is turning its attention to finding the solutions that will sustain the industry through the tough times. 

Supporting UK industry

That support will once again be evident at the MACH exhibition, which opens its doors at the NEC in Birmingham on 15 April next year. One of the key themes of the show will be the importance of sustainability and helping manufacturers make the transition to a low-carbon, sustainable business model. 

The opportunities posed by decarbonising production processes is considerable and will offer manufacturers the possibility of new business for some time to come. 

The ability of the UK manufacturing supply chain to adapt to current requirements is also one of the strengths of the sector and next year, for the first time, the abilities of firms within the supply chain will get a platform of their own.

Spotlighting supply chains

The Engineering Supply Chain, which is co-located at MACH, is designed to help buyers source quality suppliers from within the UK-based supply chain.
UK engineers produce goods of the highest quality, which is one of the reasons why the sector has such a strong reputation. The ESC Show will highlight the strong links that exist between supplier and customer. It will afford businesses the chance to meet face-to-face, thereby improving communication and helping both supplier and customer better understand the needs of the other. 

The high quality of work produced by firms in the UK supply chain owes much to the approved industry standards manufacturers have to meet. The reassurance this offers customers cannot be overlooked and is why the UK industry is held in such high regard. In countries where standards are not as rigid, finished articles may be cheap but the quality is invariably inferior and prone to high levels of waste. The UK sector is essentially future-proofed against this and is why customers can have confidence in the goods being produced.

The industry is also characterised by shorter lead times. Goods can be manufactured much quicker in the UK because of shorter supply chains - benefiting both customer and supplier. The high quality of UK research and development work also means that many of the problems with new goods are eliminated well in advance of the production cycle getting underway.

A range of business benefits

With firms increasingly being asked about their sustainability, the need to transport goods shorter distances has great benefits in terms of reducing their carbon footprints.

The advances in manufacturing technologies also place UK companies ahead of the opposition. None more so than with Addictive Manufacturing where the benefits of 3D printing help to reduce production cost and minimise waste. These also offer benefits, with prototyping and short production runs, helping add flexibility to the production process and increasing control over cashflow because you only need to order what is absolutely necessary in order to complete the short batches.

Avoiding the need to ship products large distances also shortens supply chains and aids decarbonisation by eliminating unnecessary travel. UK firms will be able to learn the cost benefits attached to this and how the saving gained by reduced transport costs can be ploughed back into the business, helping towards energy costs, skills and training improvements and research and development. 

We cannot recommend the benefits of both exhibiting and visiting these shows. It is why the MTA stands ready to support its members and to promote the high quality work being carried out by UK engineering-based manufacturers throughout the supply chain. 

James Selka is CEO of the Manufacturing Technologies Association

For more information: 

www.mta.org.uk

Tel: 020 7298 6400