Manufacturer commits to innovation

Advanced cutting tool manufacturer SGS Carbide Tool has joined customers and founding members of the Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) - Airbus, Rolls-Royce and Aero Engine Controls - by signing a long-term partnership agreement.

SGS Carbide Tool's MD Alan Pearce said: "The MTC takes innovative ideas and converts them into viable processes that can be transferred into industry and start to regenerate UK manufacturing, which we are proud to be associated with. We are joining a membership that pushes the boundaries of innovation through testing the functional applications of equipment in a practical environment." Opened in Coventry in July 2011, the MTC represents a £40.5 million publicly funded investment and has been developed in response to the Government's strategy for high technology manufacturing. Pearce added: "Being a partner will bring numerous benefits to the SGS design and development team, including the opportunity to apply new cutting, drilling and finishing tools, coating technologies, and machining strategies, in conjunction with end users and university specialists."