NEWS
WHO WILL LEAD THE NEXT GENERATION?
James McIntosh, Managing Director of Cogent Skills Apprenticeships, says succession planning and leadership development are becoming pressing concerns across the UK’s process industries, as experienced operational leaders approach retirement and organisations expect the next generation to step up.
The scale of the challenge is stark in some sub-sectors. In chemicals manufacturing alone, government statistics show more than one in four (25.6%) employees are aged 55 or over, underlining the urgency of succession planning.
This raises important questions around knowledge transfer and the development of future leaders across process manufacturing more broadly. Simultaneously manufacturing operations are becoming increasingly automated and data driven. As technologies evolve and experienced employees approach retirement, employers face the dual challenge of retaining critical operational knowledge while developing leaders who can manage modern manufacturing environments.
So, what is the growing importance of developing leadership capability within manufacturing workforces? Lack of leadership training: Often, people promoted to leadership and management roles achieve this based on their knowledge, experience and technical ability; they may have led a project but haven’t had the benefit of dedicated and structured leadership training. Equally, new leaders might have come from other companies, but without formal qualifications. This presents an even greater challenge with the advent of automation, digital technologies and data-driven decision-making. This is less about having technical skills but more about how leaders articulate this knowledge to others. For example, a company may have access to a wealth of data, but it needs skill and competence to communicate its relevance to project managers and senior leaders – and how they communicate it onwardly. And introducing a concept like lean manufacturing needs team buy-in to succeed, therefore leadership is vital. Succession planning: Having an ageing workforce nearing retirement risks the loss of decades of operational knowledge. This means creating an ongoing learning commitment to the continuous development of their people. But succession planning is now as much about younger staff moving “up the chain” as retirees moving on. Getting this right, and cascading knowledge across the workforce, positively affects all employers advancing their skills. Not doing this, ultimately, risks failing to prepare people with the right skills to achieve the company’s goals or having competent professionals running a site. Leadership apprenticeships – building resilient talent pipelines: Employers need a solution for how to upskill team leaders. And that tends
to involve a hybrid technical and leadership qualification that aligns with people and manufacturing requirements. And while companies, traditionally, have treated apprenticeships as a junior employee entry point – specifically level 2 and 3 – they don’t always recognise the value of higher-level apprenticeships. However, it’s possible to elevate a process operator who completes a level 3
apprenticeship and, today, handles the daily production of chemicals to a level 4, developing skills, aptitude and talent to manage both the process and team. This is how the Process Leader Apprenticeship (Level 4) was designed together with industry organisations to fill existing skills gaps and meet their requirements. Equivalent to a Higher National Certificate (HNC), this serves people both new to team leadership roles and those without formal education or training.
Originating in the automotive industry, it has now been adapted and adopted by different sectors and is delivered across up to 10 process manufacturing industries. Essentially, it’s an apprenticeship package that can be funded by the levy as an upskilling pathway for process leaders; equipping experienced operators and technicians to progress into leadership roles.
The leadership skills imperative for manufacturing: At a time when some leadership and management apprenticeship schemes have been defunded, we have seen about 100 Process Leader apprenticeship start each year. However, at this quantity, the sector is not yet scaling leadership development quickly enough to meet future workforce demands. Realistically, the numbers of leadership apprentices should be reaching 1,000 annually across manufacturing sectors. And with the demands of manufacturing moving so quickly, neglecting to upskill people means running the risk of getting left behind. Higher level apprenticeships with a more industry-specific focus allows trainees to apply relevant knowledge in the workplace immediately and to constantly reaffirm what they’ve learned; developing much-needed people with the right skills to lead today’s manufacturing teams. u
cogentskills.com/courses/process-leader-apprenticeship/
NULOGY EXPANDS ITS OFFERING AT PPMA SHOW
Nulogy, a provider of manufacturing operations software, will showcase an expanded portfolio of solutions at PPMA 2026 on Stand A92, helping manufacturers improve quality, compliance, safety and production performance. Building on its successful “Don’t Lose Sleep” campaign, Nulogy will demonstrate how its technology gives manufacturing professionals greater confidence and control across critical operational areas. Visitors to the stand will be able to take part in live software demonstrations and see the benefits first-hand. Alongside its established Smart Factory platform, Nulogy will highlight its Quality Management System (QMS) and Environmental Health & Safety (EHS) solutions. Designed for highly regulated manufacturing environments, QMS
provides traceability, evidence capture, audit preparation and real- time visibility, helping manufacturers reduce errors, improve quality and maintain compliance without disrupting production.
Meanwhile, Nulogy EHS enables organisations to manage safety
programmes, incidents, inspections and environmental controls through a single platform. The system supports standardised safety processes and simplifies the management of compliance documentation across multiple sites. Both Nulogy EHS and QMS support offline mobile access, can be deployed quickly across sites, and integrate with existing enterprise software, allowing for seamless implementation. For production teams, Nulogy Smart Factory, introduced to the UK market at last year’s PPMA, delivers real-time visibility into equipment performance, workforce allocation and production metrics, helping to reduce downtime, improve efficiency and optimise overall equipment effectiveness (OEE). Visitors can meet the Nulogy team on Stand A92. The full PPMA Show preview is on page 34, and the September issue will include a PPMA supplement. u
www.nulogy.com
JULY/AUGUST 2026 | PROCESS & CONTROL ENGINEERING 5
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
