IT Jan 2008 - Industrial Technology Magazine

INDUSTRY NEWS
www.industrialtechnology.co.uk
Manufacturers resilient despite
the tougher climate, says EEF
Output and order balances remain
firm, with export orders picking up
despite the weak dollar. Confidence
remains strong, although optimism is
down on the previous quarter
Manufacturers continue to record healthy growth and
remain upbeat about the future despite tougher trading
conditions, according to a leading barometer of the
sector published by EEF, the manufacturers’
organisation and Grant Thornton. Furthermore, EEF also released
figures showing that the recent credit crunch has had a relatively
limited impact so far on manufacturers, with only a small percentage
of companies seeing a significant increase in the cost of finance.
Commenting, EEF chief economist Steve Radley said: “Despite
rising oil prices, a falling dollar and a more uncertain economic
outlook, manufacturers recorded another quarter of healthy growth
and are looking to the future with a degree of confidence. Investment
intentions also remain strong, reflecting their continuing commitment
to drive up productivity. Though the economic outlook remains
unclear, manufacturers’ greater resilience should mean that growth
continues into 2008.”
Order and output balances were both in positive territory for the
ninth consecutive quarter. In contrast to the last quarter, export
orders to both EU and non EU countries picked up whilst domestic
orders edged down slightly. However, the balance of firms reporting
falling margins on export sales indicate the weaker dollar is beginning
to take its toll. The decline was most marked in those sectors that
are particularly exposed to movements in the dollar such as
electronics and aerospace. All sectors reported positive output
balances over the past three months with motor vehicles and
electrical equipment reporting the strongest balances for the second
quarter running. With the exception of basic metals, balances on
order volumes were a touch weaker, although for most sectors they
remained in double digits. Once again all regions reported positive
balances on output.
Though weaker than the unusually high figure recorded in the
previous quarter, investment intentions remained firm and above their
long-term average. The continued commitment to raising investment
reflects improved company balance sheets, confidence about future
prospects and the need to keep raising productivity if manufacturing
is to remain competitive. Separately, the survey also asked about the
impact of the current turbulence in financial markets on company
finance, only 2.4% of the 577 companies who responded to this
particular issue said that they had seen a significant increase in the
cost of finance from Banks or other financial providers. Almost
40% of companies said there had been no change.
Cleaning revealed as main cause of
production downtime across industry
Time taken to clean machinery has been revealed as the main
cause of downtime within UK production, with over half
(52%) of companies polled citing this as their main
frustration, according to a poll by peristaltic pump
manufacturer, Watson-Marlow Bredel. With machinery downtime
representing one of the greatest losses in production and revenue, it’s
important for manufacturers to be able to look for ways to minimise
the time that equipment is out of use.
Along with cleaning, 24% of companies cited faulty machinery as
a main cause of production downtime and 13% claimed human error.
Encouragingly, only 7% claimed to have issues with contamination
and 4% with labour shortages. Watson-Marlow Bredel’s Ashley
Shepherd said: “Minimising downtime is massively important to
production companies, because ultimately it results in lost revenue.
While cleaning equipment appears to be a major frustration in
reducing downtime, there are solutions available to help minimise the
need to shut down production in order to clean some equipment.
“For example, using a peristaltic pump for fluid transfer or
dosing means that product is contained within a tube and never
comes into contact with the pump. Neither do the pumps require
additional seals and check valves for their operation. At the end of
a shift or when a different duty fluid
is used, the tube can be removed
and replaced within minutes – a
new tube creates a new pump.
Some pumps are CIP/SIP capable,
further reducing the need for
downtime.”
UK cannot afford
to be average on
skills, says CBI
Finland once again took the
number one spot in OECD’s
three-yearly PISA test of the
abilities of a sample of 15-
year old secondary-school
students, followed by Hong
Kong (China) and Canada in
second and third place.
The PISA survey, based
on tests carried out in 2006
in 57 countries that together
account for nearly 90% of
world GDP, is the most
comprehensive and rigorous
international yardstick of
secondary-school students’
attainments. PISA 2006
tested students on how much
they knew about science and
their ability to use scientific
knowledge and understanding
to identify and address
questions and resolve
problems in daily life.
The UK was ranked a
lowly 14th, only slightly
above the OECD average.
Commenting on the
OECD’s international
comparison of educational
performance Richard
Lambert, the CBI’s Director-
General said: “The OECD
figures make for disturbing
reading. At a time of
increasing global
competition, the UK cannot
afford to be ‘average’. We
must help our young people
to attain the world class
performance they are
capable of. We need a
renewed sense of urgency in
tackling the UK’s
underperformance in literacy
and numeracy.”
Perhaps most worryingly,
across the across the OECD
area as a whole learning
outcomes have generally
remained flat, while
expenditure on education in
OECD countries rose by an
average of 39% between
1995 and 2004.
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