News Industry Comment More STEM learners needed to avert engineering crisis
ANN WATSON, MANAGING director of EAL, has called for more to be done to encourage young people into engineering apprenticeships following the publication of the Social Market Foundation’s (SMF) report, ‘In The Balance: The STEM human capital crunch’.
The recent Budget announcement by chancellor George Osborne seems to have caused an element of confusion once again and has been described as something of a mixed bag by some industry experts. For example, highlighting the pros and cons of the Budget, Juergen Maier, MD of Siemens Industry UK and Ireland, said, “It was welcome news that borrowing appears under control, but with growth forecasts revised downwards, I was hoping for some more of the underspend to be invested in infrastructure projects. The chancellor’s account of our infrastructure was seen through rose tinted spectacles and actually much more is needed to support energy and transport.”
Attempting to add some clarity for industry, this month we take a look at the world of machine safety, sensing systems, communications & networking, and coding, marking & labelling - plus an industry focus on the food & beverage sector. Joe Bush, Editor
The report claims that as many as one in five 21 year olds must enter the engineering profession each year until 2020 to overcome skills shortages. SMF also said the industry is already 40,000 short of the number of STEM students it needs each year, a problem that
will get worse as the engineering workforce ages and retires. Watson commented, “The engineering sector, in particular, is heading for catastrophe unless we encourage more young people to take up STEM subjects at GCSE and A Level and follow through to engineering appren- ticeships at Level 3 and above.” Watson further stressed that a key tool in showing young people the benefits of a STEM- based career, is the use of role models, highlighting the Industry Apprentice Council (IAC), a project EAL is support-
ing and funding.
She continued, “The IAC is made up of talented, highly moti- vated apprentices in the engineer- ing and manufacturing sector - superb role models for school leavers who want to design and build cars, aeroplanes, defence technology and even chocolate bars for a living. There is such a diversity of careers associated with engineering and manufactur- ing and the IAC is ideally placed to inspire, educate and encourage more young people to follow in their footsteps.”
www.eal.org.uk
Manufacturers urged to expand exports
MIDLANDS-BASED MANUFACTURING network, Made in the Midlands, is urging businesses to expand their export strategies and to start thinking globally. The network is particularly encouraging its members and other Midlands companies to seek out export opportunities to BRIC countries and regions outside the EU.
Speaking about some export benefits, Made in the Midlands president John Faulkner, said, “Depending on the shipping density of your compo- nents the rewards are often quite attractive. Especially with emerging economies such as Brazil, it is a great time to seek out new opportunities.” Although moving into export seems to be a natural progression for any business, he also suggests that, “UK companies should only seek to enter the export market when they have exhausted opportunities on their own doorstep and if the investment in export can be justified.”
In the past five years the UK has seen its exports to
BRIC countries more than doubling, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). However, a report by the Marketing Birmingham Regional Observatory and the Greater Birmingham and Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership (GBSLEP) revealed last year that only around 25% of businesses in the West Midlands export to overseas markets, with nearly half of them primarily focusing on the local region. Made in the Midlands is a manufacturing busi- ness network, currently representing 260 local manufacturing firms. Its goal is to bring companies together and expand the manufacturing base in the West Midlands.
www.madeinthemidlands.com
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