PROFESSION WATCH MANUFACTURING RESISTANCE TO


Survey reveals attitudes towards technology amongst senior business leaders may jeopardise future business survival


The Connected Enterprise report, produced by Sigma Dynamics, reveals that nearly half (49 per cent) of manufacturing industry leaders are sceptical about the benefits of implementing new business technology.


Exploring this scepticism, the research


shows that 49 per cent are doubtful that it improves efficiency, 40 per cent are cynical about its ability to improve productivity and 66 per cent question its positive impact on customer relationships. According to Colin Crow, managing


director of Sigma Dynamics, these statistics imply that there are many manufacturing leaders who have been burned by previous digital transformation efforts. “It is unfortunately quite common for businesses to choose the wrong


technologies, or roll them out without enough support for employees, which can be very costly mistakes,” he said. “Some of these misconceptions are


therefore understandable, but as the twin threats of Brexit and COVID-19 have shown us over the past year, the business landscape can change with incredible speed.” Crow went on to say that the


manufacturing sector must be agile and open-minded in order to cope with the impact of national and global challenges that we will all inevitably face, and it will soon become almost impossible for businesses in the industry to thrive without the help of strategically planned and implemented technological innovations. “However, from our research it’s


frustratingly clear that these events still have not served as a wake-up call for complacent business leaders,” he concluded.


❱❱ Resistance to digital transformation must be overcome for UK manufacturing to thrive


BIRMINGHAM SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING COMPLETE


Building work has finished on the £46.5m School of Engineering at the University of Birmingham. The 12,000m2 facility spans five floors and features a double-height atrium. The facility complements the railway innovation centre, encourages engineering collaboration and fosters more links with industry. The development aims to not only bring


together many of the institution’s engineering disciplines, but also provide opportunities for successful collaboration between academia and industry. Procured through the Constructing


West Midlands framework, the School of Engineering puts industry at the heart of the University’s campus, alongside the £16.4m UK Rail Research and Innovation Network (UKRRIN) centre of excellence in digital systems. The facility’s design was curated specifically with agile and collaborative working between academics, researchers, students and staff, in mind. The development offers open-plan


spaces and cellular facilities, including a dedicated student support hub, a new 179-capacity design centre, a 50-seat electronics and electrical-focused


32 /// Testing & Test Houses /// March 2021 ❱❱ School of Engineering at Birmingham University gains new facilities


projects space, 20 flexi-bays that have been specifically allocated for staff and student interactions along with three 50- seat seminar rooms. It also features 160 drop-in study spaces throughout the building. The basement also houses a full-size set


of railway points, the University’s pantograph test rig and a test track for the scaled hydrogen-powered train –


further expanding the university’s commitment to the integration of academia and industry. “The new building sits alongside our


new centre of excellence in railway innovation, the UKRRIN Digital Systems Innovation Centre, placing industry at the heart of our campus,” said Professor Clive Roberts, head of the School of Engineering.


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