finance
Report extract: Key findings - 2
was the second most popular exporting destination with 49% of respondents (a 10% decrease on last year), followed by Asia (excluding China) accounting for 47%. Non-eurozone Europe has dropped to the fourth most popular destination with 40% (a 9% decrease from last year) and exporting to China and South America was undertaken by 25% and 21% of respondents respectively.
Industry 4.0
Industry 4.0 refers to the current trend of automation and data exchange in manufacturing technologies. It includes cyber- physical systems, the Internet of things and cloud computing. It may be a buzz-phrase, but for the first time our survey explored awareness about the so called fourth Industrial Revolution. The data shows that almost three quarters (74%) of respondents have no understanding of the concepts underlying Industry 4.0 however, even though only 26% of respondents indicated that they understood the principles, it may be that others are already involved but just not familiar with the German tagline.
According to research, if the UK manufacturing and engineering sector were to invest as much in Industry 4.0 (or digital manufacturing as the UK Government calls it) as our German counterparts, it could boost revenues by £20 billion by 2020. The reality is that we must make sure that we have an industrial strategy that is more than just words. We should be looking at ways to both educate and incentivise the SME sector to enable it to understand and invest in the principles of Industry 4.0 to meet our global competitors head on.
Like it or not, the inescapable issue dominating the national agenda is what Brexit will look like? For the manufacturing and engineering sector the issues thrown up by the uncertainty of our pending departure from the European Union are unanswerable until the details have been settled. Uncertainty always affects business confidence, so the surprise this year is perhaps around just
THE BUSINESS MAGAZINE – THAMES VALLEY – NOVEMBER 2016
Kate Arnott, partner and head of manufacturing in the Thames Valley 01494 441226
kate.arnott@
mhllp.co.uk macintyrehudson.co.uk
businessmag.co.uk 37
how optimistic the sector remains. It is true to say that 7% fewer businesses are expecting growth than in 2015, but almost 70% are still confident of seeing some growth come through, despite an almost universal belief that production costs will increase.
There is much to play for as we face the new reality of a United Kingdom outside of the EU. There will be challenges, but there will also be massive opportunities which we must grasp and take advantage of. If the optimism shown in this survey is anything to go by, then the sector will adapt and thrive.
If you would like to discuss any aspect of the report or receive a complimentary copy email Kate Arnott; details below.
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