Daily Manufacturing News Digest – the industry stories you should be aware of today

Posted on 17 Mar 2023 by The Manufacturer

Each day The Manufacturer compiles the top manufacturing news stories from around the web. To make your life a little easier, we trawl through all the major trade publications, broadsheets and business magazines to find you the most important manufacturing news each morning. Don't forget to bookmark this page and check back daily.

Britvic invests £13m in fifth canning line at UK manufacturing site

Leading soft drinks business, Britvic, is announcing a further £13m investment into a fifth canning line at its Rugby factory.

Based on the Glebe Farm Industrial Estate, the investment is expected to create up to 20 new jobs across engineering and manufacturing, as well as providing Britvic’s apprentices with an opportunity to take up full-time positions in the business. Read more via The Manufacturer

BMW Group reaffirms commitment to UK automotive industry as it outlines future plans

BMW has reaffirmed its commitment to the UK’s automotive industry and is in talks with the government over additional financial support.

Bosses of the German group have been addressing motoring journalists from around Europe at its annual conference this week (March 15) and it did not take long for the subject of Britain to come up.

The firm currently operates its Rolls-Royce plant near Goodwood in West Sussex as well as a Mini factory in Oxford. Read more via Car Dealer Magazine

BAE Systems and Pitch Technologies UK awarded land training contract with British Army

The Ministry of Defence has awarded BAE Systems and Pitch Technologies UK a contract to support the British Army to deliver a new virtual training programme.

The Land Training Test & Reference Capability, part of the Army’s Collective Training Transformation Programme (CTTP), will help define the Army’s approach to future collective training and select a strategic partner to deliver an integrated, mobile and digitalised system. This will allow the British Army to train its soldiers wherever and whenever it needs to across the globe. Read more via The Manufacturer

First UK BYD car dealerships opened this week

UK dealer group Pendragon PLC confirmed today it was “the UK leading launch partner” for BYD EVs and was launching the Atto 3 C-SUV at two new dealerships in Birmingham and Milton Keynes opened today under its premium Stratstone retail brand.

The dealerships will be Pendragon’s first entirely EV showrooms, the company said in a statement.

The two launch dealerships will be followed by the opening of Stratstone BYD Mayfair in London, later in 2023, which will become BYD’s UK flagship location. Read more via Just Auto

EngineeringUK releases new report on engineering in higher education

EngineeringUK has released an extensive new research report – ‘Engineering in higher education’ – which explores the number, characteristics and outcomes of engineering and technology students in higher education (HE) in the UK.

In terms of numbers, the report reveals there were 38,615 first-degree engineering and technology undergraduates in their first year of university. This equates to 6.1% of all first-degree undergraduates. Read more via The Manufacturer

Build your own adventure: Lego® Icons launches Classic Defender 90 set

The LEGO® Group and Defender are celebrating 75 years of Land Rover with a build-your-own-adventure: the new LEGO® Icons Classic Land Rover Defender 90. The 2,336-piece set is complete with all the accessories for an off-road expedition.

The set has a two-in-one format, allowing builders to create an everyday road-ready model or customise it for adventures. Read more via Jaguar Land Rover

Lockheed Martin and Northumbria University join forces to unlock the future of space-based solar power

Lockheed Martin is celebrating STEM in British Science Week with Northumbria University by investing £150,000 in a project that aims to accelerate the delivery of space-based solar power. Combining science and technology, the project will use specialised photovoltaic cells that will collect and convert laser power into useable power for future space and lunar vehicles.

With this year’s British Science Week theme being ‘connection’, this technology has future applications that could include space-based solar power, that could deliver a consistent source of clean energy in all weather conditions and at all times of day. By harvesting the Sun’s energy, this new form of solar power could potentially beam electricity wirelessly from space to Earth, bringing a new source of zero carbon power to connect homes and businesses without the need for large amounts of land-based infrastructure. Read more via Lockheed Martin