COMMENT & ANALYSIS<strong>Industrial</strong> <strong>Technology</strong> ISSN 0967-5787 www.industrialtechnology.co.ukEDITORIALEditorMark Simms BSc Tel: 01732 773268ADVERTISINGAs a controlled circulation journal, <strong>Industrial</strong> <strong>Technology</strong> is sentfree of charge to individuals in the UK who meet the terms andconditions of the publishers. To apply for free regular copies,write to the Circulation Department. To those not meeting theterms and conditions, the magazine is available on UKsubscription at a cost of £60 per year (10 issues). Single copiesare £7. Overseas subscriptions (airmail) are as follows: Rest ofEurope including Eire £80 (single copies £9); USA $155 (single$18); Elsewhere £90 (single copies £10).Printing & production by Headley Brothers, Ashford, KentOrigination by Sarah & Marknew wavePUBLISHING LTDmark.simms@itmagazine.uk.comRegional Director (Home Counties & South East)Mark West Tel: 020 8467 3613mark.west@itmagazine.uk.comRegional Sales Manager (Midlands & South West)Helen Hardwick Tel: 01926 484648helen.hardwick@itmagazine.uk.comRegional Sales Manager (North of England & Scotland)Jan Anderson Tel: 01978 314730jan.anderson@itmagazine.uk.comDeutschland/Suisse/ÖsterreichEisenacher Medien Tel: +49 228-2499860info@eisenacher-medien.deOverseasGeorge Bennett MA Tel: + 44 161 374 5615PRODUCTIONit.marketing@itmagazine.uk.comProduction ManagerSarah Curl Tel: 0161 374 5615sarah.curl@itmagazine.uk.comMAILING ADDRESSESPress Releases: PO Box 342, Tonbridge TN10 4WDAdvertising Copy: 1st Floor, Hesketh House3 School Road, Sale, Cheshire M33 7XYCirculation Department: PO Box 85, Sale M33 2BBEmail: it.circulation@itmagazine.uk.comGENERAL ENQUIRIESEmail: it.info@itmagazine.uk.com Tel: 0161 374 5615Fax: 0161 374 6436AUDIT BUREAU OF CIRCULATIONSBUSINESS PRESSAre manufacturing andengineering out of balance?All the talk in industry in the UK right now seems to be centring on high valuemanufacturing. The Government has latched onto this in its updated manufacturingstrategy document, and bodies like the <strong>Technology</strong> Strategy Bureau (which is makinghuge investments in research, development, design and manufacturing across thecountry) are citing high value manufacturing as the only way forward for British industry. Butwhat exactly is high value manufacturing? Well, put simply, I would argue that it is arecognition that companies making run of the mill, me-too products can no longer competewith the low cost imports from the emerging economies. The focusinstead has to be on innovative products (with compelling functionalor feature-led advantages) made using innovative manufacturingprocesses (combining increased flexibility and increased productivitywith reduced operational costs).Successful UK enterprises will wonder if there is anythingsignificantly new here. Well, perhaps and perhaps not. But I reckonthe real benefit of the focus on the term ‘high value manufacturing’ isthat it has – maybe for the first time – really crystallised our thinkingon what it takes to survive as a high wage manufacturing economy.And this new focus is clearly paying dividends because manufacturingin the UK has been on the up for many months now. The economicgloom surrounding the banking and construction sectors that are threatening to drag othersectors down with them seem to be having very little impact on the manufacturing sector.Indeed, when The Times recently published a vulnerability rating for different industry areas,manufacturing was cited as the least vulnerable by quite some margin.So the future’s bright then? Well, we have a focus and a strategy, but I believe there’s aproblem brewing. Our manufacturing base is on the way up, but at the same time our coreengineering base is diminishing. If we can’t pull through the best people into careers inengineering, then who is going to design those high value products that the market is callingfor, and who is going to develop, maintain and continuously improve the innovativemanufacturing processes that will be needed to make them? Our manufacturing base and ourengineering base seem to be tipping dangerously out of balance.This won’t be news to any of you out there. I’ve seen first hand the problems you’re havingin recruiting good engineering staff to bolster your companies. The question is; what do we doabout it? The Government’s launch of diplomas in the likes of engineering and manufacturinghave attracted only a tiny fraction of the anticipated numbers of students, and I haven’t seenmuch in the way of roll out of the promised apprenticeship schemes. It would be interesting todevote a page in the magazine to this question of balance, built around your thoughts andcomments, because it’s an issue that we clearly need to address, and quickly. A high valuemanufacturing future can only be built on a sound engineering present.Mark SimmsEditormark.simms@itmagazine.uk.comFACT file...Think Automation and beyond...Innovation in Safety, from Japans marketleader in machine safetyPower + Signal + Display + Control + Switch + Safety = SolutionsWe are the obvious alternativeT. 01256 321000 E. marketing@uk.idec.com W. www.idec.com• Ergonomically designed “ON-OFF-ON” switch• 3 position switch for maximum operator safety• Compliant to:IEC 60204-1:1997ISO 12100-2:2003ANSI/RIA R15.06ANSI B11.19, 12.3.1.3• Various types and appearance; providing yourideal solutionMore details: Write in 50 on the free information card5