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The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is delighted to support this year's Manufacturer of the Year Awards. This is the fourth year of RBS's support for the annual event, which provides welcome profile to the ongoing successes of the UK manufacturing sector. RBS has a long history through its RBS and NatWest brands of supporting UK manufacturers.

RBS Group has over 40 million customers worldwide, over half of which (25 million) are in the UK. We have more locally based business banking relationship managers than any other bank in the UK and extensive geographical reach across Britain through our network.

One of the major benefits of banking with RBS is that we thoroughly understand your business sector. Couple that to the way your relationship manager works closely with your business to pinpoint and satisfy your exact needs, and the result is unsurpassed service.

The London-based Manufacturing & Infrastructure team, for instance, is part of the Corporate Banking division and works with new and existing firms in the manufacturing sector. It has a wealth of experience in the marketplace and sector, and can draw upon the wide range of product expertise within the RBS Group as well as liaising with colleagues performing similar roles throughout the UK. The maxim is to provide support through regular contact coupled with appropriate solutions in the current challenging climate.

At the heart of our service approach is our commitment to getting the basics right and giving customers what they tell us they want. With the focus on identifying the pressing issues that confront your business, we develop and refine the corporate banking solutions that are right for you - integrated, insightful and effective.

If you want to find out more about how we can help your company, please contact Peter Russell, Head of Sector, RBS Manufacturing & Infrastructure, on 0207 673 1007. www.rbs.co.uk/corporate.ashx

Applied Angle is a consultancy and training business designed to embed performance for the long term and achieve incredible results for its clients. As well as a robust understanding of best practice methods, Applied Angle sets itself apart by working with people and organisations on an emotional and behavioural level. This means that business improvement and change is grounded within the organisation, leaving clients self-sufficient to continue implementing business success.

Applied Angle brings sustained change to a wide range of sectors, and consults and trains public and private organisations, including NHS Trusts, manufacturing and the supply chain.

Brammer is the UK division of Europe's leading distributor of industrial, maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) products and services. With a turnover in excess of £130 million and more than 800 employees, the company offers a range of more than one million individual products via a nationwide network of 89 Sales and Service Centres.

Brammer's extensive product range covers bearings, mechanical power transmission products (including gearboxes and motors), pneumatics, hydraulics, sea ls and industrial automation, as well as a complete range of tools, maintenance and health and safety products. The company is an authorised distributor for many of the world's leading brands including SKF, NSK, Renold, Gates, Flender, Siemens, SMC, Norgren, Festo, Rocol, 3M, Loctite and Schaeffler UK.

By combining technical expertise with excellence in supply-chain logistics, purchasing and the management of third-party providers, Brammer has a proven track record of saving its customers money within three critical business areas: reducing total acquisition costs, improving overall production efficiency, and reducing working capital. Since 2007, verified cost savings exceeding £70 million have been achieved for Brammer customers in the UK. Brammer customers include Cadbury, Tarmac, Alcoa, Scottish Water, Anglian Water and Thames Water.

Siemens Industry Automation & Drive Technologies (IA&DT) employs 1500 people in the UK, working with customers in a wide range of industries from food and beverage, chemical and pharmaceutical, to automotive and aerospace. With a focus on green technologies, the IA&DT portfolio includes standard products for the manufacturing and process industries, as well as system solutions and total solutions for the automation of entire plants, for example in the automotive industry.

Siemens was established in the United Kingdom 167 years ago and employs 16,915 people in the UK. As a leading global engineering and technology services company, Siemens provides innovative solutions to help tackle the world's major challenges, across the key sectors of energy, industry and healthcare.

The world's very first pallet network system, Palletline continues to lead by example with an established reputation for innovation and service excellence.

Significant investment in new facilities combined with industry leading technology and advances in quality management systems have further increased the efficiency and reliability of the service, keeping Palletline at the forefront of development and innovation.

Widely recognised as the UK's leading specialist in this highly competitive sector, Palletline continues to place the emphasis firmly on quality, reliability, and performance. Today, Palletline provides vital distribution links for customers across the UK and into mainland Europe, transporting an infinite variety of goods from foodstuffs and packaging through to electrical components.

www.palletline.co.uk/

Financial Services Award Sponsored by Eversheds

The IMCRC - The Innovative Manufacturing and Construction Research Centre - is a research centre based at Loughborough University which brings together a multi-disciplinary group undertaking leading-edge collaborative research to enhance the processes, products, and competitiveness of the UK's manufacturing and construction industries. Funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council its scope is wide, covering aspects of technology, business and organisational performance, and human factors. The centre has over 138 academic staff and researchers. There are currently 145 industrial partners, including famous brand names and small specialist organisations.