Innovation for the nation

The need to encourage greater investment and expansion in manufacturing in the UK was explored by the panel, during a Dods Innovation Panel event held on Tuesday lunchtime. The issues of improving the UK supply chain, careers advice and the role of clusters of innovation were all touched on during the busy fringe event.

Opening the discussion, director of policy at the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), Dr Adam Marshall said one could not underestimate the task being faced to get the UK to become the leading destination for advanced manufacturing.

He said key questions to consider was about fully exploiting the UK’s science base for growth, ensuring support for innovative companies and ideas to be taken to market and to re-balance the economy on exports and investment in manufacturing.

President of the ERA Foundation, Sir Alan Rudge, whom it was noted had significant experience in engineering and business, began by citing the reports the ERA had produced that contained 31 parameters that warranted attention if the UK was to create the conditions for a renaissance in manufacturing.
He talked about the balance of trade issue and the deficit in manufactured goods that also led to a drop off in research and development (R&D). He said many UK assets were now foreign owned and said the government need to create more investment in productive industry, not just investment in R&D alone.
He also criticised the energy costs and the “damage” of the Climate Change Act on business, arguing that to save the environment one must first save the economy.

Philip Bowen, director of both Cardiff School of Engineering and of the Gas Turbine Research Centre (GTRC), addressed the debate around the role of universities and exploring how an MIT example could be set up closer to home.

He talked about creating entrepreneurs and developing more graduates to be less risk-averse, noting Cardiff had set up an “entrepreneurial masters” programme.
It was important to increase the popularity of engineering and manufacturing, Bowen said, and link arts and science more effectively together.

The ambassador for apprenticeships, and chair for the all-party groups on apprenticeships and manufacturing, Gordon Birtwistle MP, spoke about how manufacturing had been “disregarded” and been allowed to decline, though was no turning a corner and becoming more “in vogue”. He talked about motor manufacturing and the fact some companies used higher numbers of British products then others.