economic crisis, Southern Manufacturing returns to FIVE, Farnborough from 15- 16 February to demonstrate the best of British. This time last year, Southern Manufacturing organiser European Trade & Events Services (ETES) was looking forward to 2011 with cautious optimism. This time around it seems the threat of financial uncertainty once again threatens to plunge the economy into crisis. UK manufacturing however seems to be painting quite a different picture and
aking place amid a manufacturing sector remaining bullish in the face of a fresh
while the overall economy is expected to stumble next year, the prospects for within the sector continue to be more optimistic.
According to the
manufacturers’ organisation EEF, 90% of its members are involved in export business and for nearly half of them, exports account for the majority of their turnover. The largest export market for UK manufacturers is not Europe, but Asia and the low value of Sterling outside the EU is making UK firms not just competitive, but highly attractive once their high level of technical expertise and specialist skills is factored into the equation. Having undergone a quiet transformation from heavy manufacturing to knowledge- based enterprise, the UK’s rich ecosystem of highly specialised engineering SMEs have grown extremely adept at seeking out and exploiting opportunities at home and abroad.
It is against this backdrop that Southern Manufacturing returns, describing itself as the ‘quintessential SME event; an incredibly vibrant marketplace for products and services’. ETES believes that if exhibitor numbers are any indication of
RAPID DEPLOYMENT EASY TO USE
FULL TRAINING AND SUPPORT
“We installed Tricorn in 2008 and it’s the best business decision we’ve made”
in advanced manufacturing, medical device technology and precision engineering.” All of these and more will be well represented at the 2012 event, with new exhibitors making up 20% of the total.
the business prospects for 2012, UK manufacturing has little to worry about. 2011 was a record year for Southern Manufacturing and 2012 looks set to be another record breaker. Exhibitor bookings passed the final total for 2011 in October and the organisers are forecasting a further 900m² of exhibition area to be snapped up ahead of the show’s opening.
The show’s continued focus on the small to medium enterprises that make up the core of UK manufacturing is a key factor in its continued success. “Smaller, highly specialised manufacturing companies seem to be thriving,” says show director Phil Valentine. “We’re seeing some really exciting things happening
Companies such as Amada, Haas Automation, XYZ Machine Tools, Yamazaki Mazak, Fanuc and Faro are among the familiar names returning in 2012. Joining them is an array of smaller suppliers, between them covering just about every possible requirement. Southern Manufacturing is also co-located with two other events, Southern Electronics – now the UK’s longest running electronics show – and Auto Aero, the specialist precision engineering event, popular with subcontractors. Southern Manufacturing is also well known for its free technical seminar programme running over both days in two theatres. The 2012 programme features speakers from The Manufacturing Advisory Service, UKTI, BAE Systems, EDF Energy, NAMRC, Farnborough Aerospace Consortium, University of Sheffield and The Composite Systems Innovation Centre, amongst others. Entry to all three shows and
the seminar programmes is completely free to registered business visitors with FIVE Farnborough offering plenty of free car parking and easy access by road or public transport.
So what can visitors expect to see? Precision engineering company Renishaw (stand Q48) will be exhibiting its range of additive manufacturing, metrology and encoder systems. Visitors will be introduced to its SLM systems, which utilise a pioneering, additive manufacturing process capable of producing fully dense metal parts direct from 3D CAD, using a high powered fibre laser. Parts are built from a range of fine metal powders that are fully
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60