A heavyweight line up of speakers from politics and industry will address the EEF National Manufacturing Conference - 'Make it Britain' - on Tuesday 4 March 2014 at the QE2 Centre, Westminster.
National Manufacturing Conference now sold out but follow the day on Twitter and view snippets post-event on the Conference website.
Keynote speakers Rt Hon Kenneth Clarke MP and Secretary of State for Business Rt Hon Dr Vince Cable MP will join leading industrialists to debate the challenge of doubling British exports to £1 trillion by 2020, while reversing the migration of manufacturing overseas.
Chief Executive of GKN plc, Nigel Stein will be joined on stage by Peter Anstiss, Business Development Director at BAE Systems Military Air and Information. Other successful exporters will be speaking, including: Angus Thirwell, ECO and Co-founder of Hotel Chocolat; Tony Caldeira, CEO of Caldeira Group, and Sarah Brown, Managing Director of PAI Skincare.
Richard Hemsley, Managing Director of Lombard, and Crispin Simon, Managing Director of Trade for UKTI, are among the panellists who will debate the Make it Britain Challenge.
The debate will continue into the evening for the EEF Manufacturers’ Dinner, featuring guest speakers Shadow Business Secretary Chuka Umunna MP and political commentator Matthew Paris.
The event, sponsored by asset finance provider Lombard and presented in partnership with session sponsor NatWest and technology partner Canon, coincides with the publication of an EEF research report into reshoring. This will reveal the extent of reshoring in the UK today, examining the drivers behind bringing production home and the economic impact.
Mark Eastwood, Head of Manufacturing for Commercial Banking at NatWest and RBS, said: “After a challenging number of years, many indicators are pointing to a positive year ahead for the manufacturing industry.
“In 2013 output and orders for the sector both showed positive balances and strong signs of improvement have been seen.
“One of our key aims in 2014 is to support export and international trade for manufacturers across our UK wide team. We are delighted to be supporting the EEF conference and look forward to discussing some of the challenges businesses face as well as the key priorities and growth areas with some of the industry’s leading influencers.”
EEF Chief Executive, Terry Scuoler, said: “Is the reshoring trend fact or fiction? is the flow of production back to the UK a trickle or torrent? And what types of manufacturing are returning to our shores?
“These are the questions we will be posing at the conference and that our research paper will inform. Some of the UK’s most successful exporters will be sharing their stories and delegates will have an opportunity to talk to government and the opposition about how they can support export growth and help companies restore and strengthen British production.”
Barrie Street, European and UK Customer Marketing Manager at Canon said: “The 2014 EEF National Manufacturing Conference will provide a platform for key industry figures to address some of the important issues that Britain’s manufacturing industry is facing both today and in the future. As a country, Britain remains at the forefront of innovation in manufacturing and Canon is proud to be technology partner for EEF’s 2014 conference. As part of this partnership, Canon will work alongside EEF in supporting manufacturers to address and overcome these industry challenges, helping them to power productivity with smarter ways of working. Canon is committed to working alongside manufacturers, both large and small, in becoming more efficient and profitable.”
Although the event is now sold out, you can participate throughout the day by following EEF’s Twitter feed @EEF_Press and tweeting using #EEF2014. Post-event there will be videos available on the Conference website.
Further information: www.manufacturingconference.co.uk
