News Industry Comment High tech manufacturers confident about 2012


The UK high tech manufacturing sector remains positive about prospects for 2012 according to a new survey.


The start of a new year gives us the chance to look back and reflect on what’s happened in our industry over the last 12 months. The good news is that despite the continuing economic uncertainty, manufacturing in the UK has fared well. Following the credit crunch and resulting recession that really took hold in 2009, the last two years have seen quite a fast recovery back to pre- recession levels and growth for many in the industry. Of course no one can predict the future and talk of another slow down and possible ‘double dip recession’ doesn’t help confidence levels, so we need to remain positive. In these days of fast developing


technology it’s important to keep innovating in order to remain competitive and meet customer demands. At Datateam Business Media we’ve been investing heavily in our products to make sure they retain their market-leading position. Since assuming the role of managing editor I have become more heavily involved in these developments leaving me less time to concentrate on editing, therefore from this issue I will be handing over more of the day-to-day editorial responsibility of Factory Equipment to Heather Ramsden. Heather has done a great job as the magazine’s assistant editor for the last two years and I’d like to wish her all the best in her future endeavours with the magazine.


Neil Mead - Managing Editor Events


MAINTEC 2012 28th February to 3rd March, NEC, Birmingham www.easyfairs.com


Drives & Controls 17-19 April, NEC, Birmingham www.drives-expo.com


MACH


16-20 April, NEC, Birmingham www.machexhibition.com


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Of the 362 high tech manufac- turers questioned for the GE High Tech Index in November/ December 2011, 71 per cent said they believed their business would grow in 2012. A total of 45 per cent felt they would achieve growth of over five per cent and over a quarter said they would achieve growth rates of more than 10 per cent.


UK high tech manufacturers, who use a high level of design or scientific skills to produce tech-


nologically complex products and processes, remain positive about current trading conditions with 73 per cent saying they are positive about current trading, while 29 per cent very positive and 44 per cent fairly positive. Respondents felt the Eurozone situation could provide opportu- nities. Twenty eight per cent felt the UK had become more com- petitive than other major European economies in recent times while 30 per cent felt the UK had become more competi- tive against other major European economies in the last 12 months. Forty six per cent said they were


A quiet victory for Bosch Rexroth


Rexroth’s Silenceplus gear pump has been recognised for its innova- tion in reducing noise pollution. The Silenceplus from Rexroth was highly commended at the 11th annual John Connell Awards, run by the Noise Abatement Society. Dubbed the ‘Noise Oscars’, the awards pro- mote innovative ideas that make a positive impact on the reduc- tion of excessive noise in indus- try and the community.


The winning Silenceplus fea- tures new generation technology to reduce noise levels by an aver- age of 15dB (A) in comparison with conventional gear pumps. It is also characterised by a lower


Mark Simpson and Sean Kilgallen of Bosch Rexroth


frequency sound which is more comfortable for the machine oper- ator. The Silenceplus can be used in applications with electric motor drives such as forklifts, lift plat- forms or industrial power units. Mark Simpson, divisonal man- ager for mobile applications at Bosch Rexroth, said: “We’re exceptionally proud to have been recognised at the Awards.” The Awards are named after the society’s founder, John Connell OBE, who successfully lobbied the Noise Abatement Act through Parliament in 1960 when noise became a statutory nuisance for the first time in the UK. www.boschrexroth.co.uk


planning to increase staffing levels over the next 12 months. Reasons for growth were improvement in demand from emerging markets, internal improvements in prod- ucts and services and changes to the business environment such as low interest rates and favourable exchange rate. Two key chal- lenges were identified as access to finance and energy costs. GE UK CEO Mark Elborne said: “These figures demonstrate UK high tech manufacturing is still a growth story and can play a piv- otal role in turning round the UK’s economy.


www.ge.com Innovation is key


Innovation is crucial in steering the UK into economic recovery – but requires cultural change for it to be optimised, according to Sir Richard Needham, senior inde- pendent director of Dyson. The ex-Minister of Trade spoke at a conference hosted by ANSYS, provider of simulation- led product development. He said innovation was the only way in which organisations could differentiate themselves from their competitors and warned that cost-containment initiatives could only extend so far. Focusing on reducing costs, at the expense of innovation, was destined to fail.


He said true innovation needs collaboration across research & development, marketing, sales and operations to be successful. Its absence would represent a greater barrier to innovation than government regulation. www.ansys.com


Process simulation boosts productivity and reduces risk


Process simulation is key to inno- vation as the manufacturing industry seeks to remain competi- tive and continue to exploit growth opportunities.


That’s


according to manufacturers across the defence, automotive, aero- space, oil & gas and food & bever- age sectors, surveyed as part of a report commissioned by simula- tion software company, Lanner. The research reveals other areas where simulation helps manufac- turers’ profitability including stripping out costs, facilitating agility and boosting productivity.


While cost cutting and process optimisation remain the dominant forces behind investment in simu- lation, reducing risk and complex- ity are emerging as key drivers for its adoption in the current uncer- tain economic climate.


In fact 83 per cent of respon- dents said simulation is used to mitigate risk while one in five claimed that dealing with com- plexity is a primary objective for its application.


The majority of manufacturers feel that process simulation has the potential to benefit other


departments within their organisa- tion, particularly supply chain and warehousing. However lim- ited understanding of its benefits are stemming its potential. “Process simulation is known for facilitating cost cutting, with major manufacturers such as Nissan attributing 10 million savings to the software. However its role in helping to remain ahead of global competition and achieve growth extends far beyond cost cutting alone,” commented David Jones, CEO, Lanner.


www.lanner.com JANUARY 2012 Factory Equipment


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