The current crisis of uncertainty about our future trading relationship with the EU, and the virus-fuelled worries over global trade generally, may have led some to ignore the elephant in UK manufacturing’s front room: the skills crisis.
Over the years, research by The Manufacturer suggests that UK manufacturers are gradually deciding that they can no longer wait for government to resolve the issue of insufficient talented young people joining the sector. They are doing something about it, and the Annual Manufacturing Report 2020 reinforces that notion, with 86% of respondents to our survey saying manufacturers need to take control of their own skills and training destiny.
Some manufacturers started some years ago, among them SDE Technology (formerly Salop Design and Technology) of Shrewsbury.
Nick Peters caught up with Chris Greenough, SDE’s Commercial Director, at the recent Smart Factory Expo in Liverpool.
