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GOVERNMENT UNVEILS AMBITIOUS INDUSTRIAL STRATEGY B


usiness Secretary, Greg Clark has launched the government’s Industrial Strategy with the


T


he UK’s manufacturing industry


enjoyed a boom in 2017, thanks partly to the effects of Brexit and the fall in the value of the pound helping exporters to be more competitive. This trend looks set to continue for the foreseeable future, or at least until the UK officially leaves the EU in 2019. Other major topics have been Industry 4.0, digitalisation and the Industrial Internet of Things. Having been talked about a lot for the last few years, these technology developments have started to gain traction, with most major manufacturers now planning to implement some kind of digital strategy. Of course smart manufacturing and connected factories rely heavily on automation, so we’ve seen a surge of interest in robotics, machine vision and sensor technology, which are all developing at a phenomenal rate. This all bodes well for the industry as we move towards an era where manufacturers will need to become more agile and efficient in order to cope with variation in demand and increased global competition. Manufacturers are heading into a new year with full order books and a sense of optimism, with many looking to hire more staff and invest in new equipment. And with the government publishing its Industrial Strategy whitepaper which sets out its ‘vision for building a Britain fit for the future’, it seems the manufacturing renaissance we’ve been hoping for is finally starting to take shape.


Neil Mead - Director of Editorial


publication of a white paper which sets out its plans to boost the economy, build on the country’s strengths and embrace the opportunities of technological change. First mentioned by the Prime Minister in January last year, the Industrial Strategy is her government’s long- term vision for how Britain can build on its economic strengths, address its productivity performance, embrace technological change and boost the earning power of people across the UK. With the aim of making the UK the world’s most innovative nation by 2030, the government has committed to investing a further £725 million over the next three years in the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund (ISCF) to respond to some of the greatest global challenges and the opportunities faced by the UK. This will include £170 million to transform our construction sector and help create affordable places to live and work that are safer, healthier and use less energy, and up to £210 million to improve early diagnosis of illnesses and develop precision medicine for patients across the UK. The government has previously committed £1 billion to the first wave of Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund projects, including investing £246 million in next generation battery technology and £86 million in robotics hubs across the UK. The Prime Minister has also announced an ambition to increase the level of investment in research and development (R&D), rising from 1.7 per cent to 2.4 per cent of GDP by 2027. This could mean around £80 billion of additional


investment in advanced technology in the next decade, helping to transform whole sectors, create new industries, and support innovation across the country. The white paper also confirms


government will be pressing ahead with a series of Sector Deals, with construction, life sciences, automotive and AI, the first to benefit from these new strategic and long-term partnerships with government, backed by private sector co-investment. Work will continue with other sectors on transformative sector deals. Greg Clark, said: “The way we earn and live our lives


as workers, citizens and consumers is being transformed by new technologies. The UK is well- placed to benefit from this new industrial revolution and we start from a position of significant strength. We have a thriving research and science base and are home to a wide range of innovative sectors, from advanced manufacturing and life sciences, to fintech and creative industries. “The Industrial Strategy is an unashamedly


ambitious vision for the future of our country, laying out how we tackle our productivity challenge, earn our way in the future, and improve living standards across the country.” The government’s Industrial Strategy whitepaper is available to download from http://bit.ly/2jL9pwb


INDUSTRY CONFIDENT OF MARKET BOOST IN 2018 – EEF/AIG SURVEY B


ritain’s manufacturers enter 2018 optimistic


that a growing global economy will sustain new orders and industry growth in the year ahead, according to a major survey published by EEF, the manufacturers’ organisation and the global insurer, AIG. The 2018 EEF/AIG


Executive Survey shows that the balance of companies expecting an improvement in global


conditions has reached the highest level in four years, with 42 per cent of companies expecting trading conditions to be better than last year, compared with 14 per cent predicting world growth will be slower than last year. The optimism for the global economy contrasts, however, with the outlook for the UK market with more manufacturers expecting a deterioration in the UK


economic conditions for the second year running. The confident mood


amongst industry executives is reflected in improvements across all firm level indicators in the survey – from sales to UK and export customers, to job numbers and profit margins – the balance of companies expecting to see an increase is positive for the first time in three years, with the responses improved in every case on


a year ago. This mood is tempered, however, by the continued upward trend in the proportion of companies who see more risks in the year ahead. Commenting, EEF chief


executive, Stephen Phipson, said: “Manufacturers left 2017 in an upbeat mood and are set to outpace the rest of the economy again this year as the growth in global trade continues to gain momentum.”


ROCKWELL INVESTS IN ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE FOR INDUSTRIAL AUTOMATION R


ockwell Automation has announced its investment in The Hive, a Silicon Valley


innovation fund and co-creation studio, to gain access to an ecosystem of innovators and technology start-ups with a focus on applications of artificial intelligence (AI) to industrial automation. Rockwell Automation’s goals include co- creating to solve customer problems, accelerating innovation, and identifying new emerging technologies that can help its manufacturing customers improve business performance by bridging the gaps between plant-floor and higher-level information systems.


4 DECEMBER/JANUARY 2018 | AUTOMATION “Smart manufacturing requires the use of


new and disruptive technologies such as AI to create the future industrial plants and supply networks that are flexible, efficient, responsive, and secure. AI can help manufacturers unlock data, contextualise it, and take action,” said Elik Fooks, senior vice president for corporate development at Rockwell Automation. “We continue to create partnerships with


leading innovators, such as this one with The Hive, to further advance The Connected Enterprise, our vision for realising unprecedented industrial productivity from the integration of plant and enterprise operations.”


“Rockwell Automation’s investment in The


Hive will provide it with earlier visibility to AI technology from companies fostered by The Hive’s technology team,” said T.M. Ravi, managing director and co-founder of The Hive. “These include AI-powered applications for the cognitive enterprise, edge intelligence, security, and smart machines.” The Hive (www.hivedata.com), based in Palo


Alto, California, USA, identifies new AI based opportunities with great growth potential, and based on these opportunities co-creates, funds, and launches startups with substantial operational and technology support.


/AUTOMATION


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