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EDITOR’S CHOICE FEATURE  


Brexit inbound - Looking at the basics


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anufacturing leaders must prepare accordingly for Brexit, regardless of how uncertain the outcome is. Changes in tax and trade regulations means organisations need to relook at their supply chains and take corrective actions to make them more future-proof and efficient. While devaluation of GBP will make UK exports more attractive, organisations must carefully consider where to export and what to export, depending upon the market needs, competitive landscape and margins. It will become less feasible to import all the intermediary goods or raw materials, and so organisations must re-think their strategic sourcing and play a key role in identifying, nurturing and developing the supplier base in the UK. These suppliers could be producing the supplies already, but at less volume or at lower quality. They may not be even acting as suppliers today, but will need extra support and guidance for them to fully develop themselves


and cater to the demand for UK manufacturing. This will not happen from day one, and hence organisations need to immediately start directing their efforts in this way. Many of these suppliers may


not have the burden of their existing assets. Therefore now, more than ever, is the right time to invest in smart manufacturing as part of the push for Industry 4.0, implementing 3D printing and other digital technologies to maximise throughput. Given the challenges with lead times, companies must also improve their forecasting capabilities to predict demand more accurately and build more flexibility in their supply chains. Doing so will allow them to adapt to any changes or anomalies. Many organisations will also


need to adjust their R&D strategies to manage changes in product specifications and portfolios. Those alterations might be driven by Brexit-related regulatory changes, or by shifting consumer needs and demands. Finally, organisations must also upskill their manufacturing talent pool in order to be more efficient and productive with interacting digital technologies. This may mean making changes to their operating model to use some of the talent based in different parts of the organisation, as well as setting up efficient analytics centres for the collation and interpretation of data.


Written by: Rafi Billurcu, partner, manufacturing at Infosys Consulting


Infosys Consulting infosysconsultinginsights.com / ELECTRONICS ELECTRONICS | DECEMBER/JANUARY 2020 7


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