UK Trade & Investment's Donald McNeill lists its global value chain work since the Manufacturing Strategy 2008 was launched.
The Manufacturer: What global value chain work has been started since the MS review came out?
• Review of the opportunities that exist in China and India and an extensive exercise in getting around many stakeholders to understand the UK proposition.
• Working with UKTI’s team in China to help UK companies understand the opportunities that exist around the large aircraft C919 programme being undertaken by COMAC.
1. Briefing session ran in mid-August, with speakers from Rolls-Royce and GE Aviation, to tell companies about the C919 programme and more generally about the Chinese aerospace market in advance of a UKTI-funded mission to the Beijing Airshow in late September.
2. Scoping study
• Working with India on a number of initiatives.
1. Helped to facilitate a meeting between the UK Trade Minister and the new Chairman of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) at the Paris Airshow and now following up leads from that meeting.
2. Participating in a Confederation of Indian Industry conference around DSEi on the 7th September to help outline GVC opportunities particularly on MRO and R&D in India.
3 Working with UKTI and business to establish a mentoring network for companies looking to enter the Indian market.
• Planning a number of events in the UK to outline opportunities to UK companies about accessing value chains in China and India.
• Also assisting UKTI’s sector team to support international trade activity and to identify future business plan initiatives.
TM: How many assists have there been to date?
• Paul Calver has been in post since early May 2009. In that time he has directly supported around 20 companies and this number will increase significantly over the next few months as a result of the activities outlined above.
TM: Are the UKTI missions to China/India/Brazil a direct result of the Manufacturing Strategy 2008, or was UKTI arranging these before the document came out?
• Overseas missions were already in the pipeline. GVC specialist involvement will enhance our offer.
• China-India UKTI’s second Infrastructure Specialist took up post in Chongqing China (popn. 32m) on 8 June. Pang Qin is seconded to UKTI from architects Benoy. He will be charged with spearheading the sustainable cities initiative in the city. A “Sustainable Cities” business briefing in London given by the Wuhan Infrastructure specialist attracted 50 participants and has attracted a high level of follow-up.
• ICT – June marks the end of the first phase of significant ICT GVC activity in China & India, following preparation earlier in the year. Key areas of work have been researching market opportunities, identifying qualifying UK SMEs, indentifying Indian/Chinese companies, preparing initial marketing collateral and setting out the implementation process. A series of seven India clinics were held in the UK for c.70 UK SMEs interested in India, including promoting the GVC India programme. Several UK firms expressed interest and are being followed up.
• LifeSciences – 11 UK companies from a broad variety of sectors (printing, packaging etc) attended a seminar on opportunities in anti-counterfeiting technologies for the Chinese pharmaceuticals sector. The seminar was given by the team’s GVC sector specialist and will be followed up by a mission around January.
• Energy – Sector Champion John Buckley gave a paper at the Offshore Windpower China conference in Shanghai. He also undertook a programme of company visits with BC-G Shanghai and BE Beijing in preparation for a wind delegation, with regional visits, workshop, and exhibition pavilion centred on China Windpower in Beijing w/c 19 October.
