NEWS


MANUFACTURING TECHNOLOGIES ASSOCIATION PLEDGES TO CONTINUE DOING BUSINESS WITH EU MANUFACTURERS


The Manufacturing Technologies Association (MTA), the trade body representing the UK’s engineering-based manufacturing technology suppliers, has pledged its commitment to continue working with Europe’s manufacturers – and called on politicians in the UK to back this important industry. The manufacturing industry remains a significant contributor to UK Gross Domestic Product (GDP). It directly accounts for 9% of GDP and supports more than 2.5 million jobs. In the wider context, factoring in the spending power of the people employed directly and indirectly (those in supply chains) in manufacturing, the figure rises to 23% and 7 million jobs. The MTA is a long-time advocate of maintaining close ties with European manufacturers – both before Brexit and aſterwards. As the UK’s representative with CECIMO, the European Association of the Machine Tool Industries and related Manufacturing Technologies, the MTA said the longstanding relationship between UK and EU manufacturers, some the result of decades of successful collaboration, needed to continue. In a letter to the heads of CECIMO, MTA CEO James Selka DL said the MTA, and more importantly its members, wanted to continue trading with partners in the EU and strengthen the mutually valuable


long-standing relationships that had been forged over generations. Prior to the EU referendum in 2016, the MTA consulted its members on their preferred outcome and the response to the consultation was the biggest the association had received for any survey. The outcome gave a clear indication of the strength of feeling amongst UK manufacturers to a future outside the single market. Of those responding to the survey, 89 per cent said the best interests of their


company lay in remaining part of the EU. “That the majority of the MTA’s membership should strongly favour the UK remaining within the European Union is perhaps not surprising,” said Mr Selka. “The sector is remarkably internationalised with over 80 per cent of the output of the UK manufacturing technology sector exported, with countries of the EU by far the largest single market (around 45%).” He said that in addition, many MTA companies were multinationals, including companies from outside the EU - in particular, the United States and Japan – many of which, have established a European headquarters in the UK. This has created a multiplier effect, stepping up economic activity, and driving employment growth in a diverse range of business functions such as Design, Development, Research, Applications Engineering, Service, Marketing, Management and Finance – and not just a UK sales team. “Whilst the (Brexit) agreement set out by the EU and UK Government means that we will need to adjust to a new way of working, and that this is likely to take time to settle down and become normalised, we remain totally committed to continuing business with our closest neighbours in Europe,” said Mr Selka. ■


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