Long term job creation in manufacturing is high on the agenda at the National Manufacturing Debate 2011 on May 25 at Cranfield University.

Encouraging figures from the Office for National Statistics on the growth of the manufacturing sector should provide a topical backdrop for the event.

An impressive lineup of speakers led by Mark Prisk MP, Minister of State for Business and Enterprise, precedes the actual debate.

He will be joined by a number of industry, academic and Government speakers including Sir Alan Rudge, chairman of the ERA Foundation; Philip Greenish, chief executive of The Royal Academy of Engineering; Andreas Pelz, global chief of service engineering at Rolls-Royce plc and Dr Gareth Williams, vice-president R&T business development & partnerships for Airbus, who will talk about the opportunities for the manufacturing sector to contribute to the UKs economic growth.

Chaired by Ken Hurst, editor of Works Management magazine, a 10 person strong panel, consisting of a number of the speakers joined by academic and industry representatives will then debate the motion ‘Can the manufacturing sector create a significant number of long-term jobs and a regional balance?’

The free event is preceded by an exhibition on May 24 of current manufacturing research at Cranfield with tours of state-of-the-art facilities.

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

Sir Alan Rudge CBE, chairman of the ERA Foundation

Manufacturing in the UK: Understanding the problems, identifying solutions

The mantra that the UK is a post industrial society has done enormous damage to the UK's economy, both by discouraging investment in manufacturing while encouraging our best and brightest to look elsewhere for their careers.  To tackle an issue of this magnitude it is essential to understand the nature, scale and priority of the problem before considering a remedy. This talk presents some quantified data which defines the problem more clearly and then, based upon this understanding, provides guidelines on what needs to be done to begin to rectify the damage done.

Dr Gareth Williams, Vice President R&T Business Development & Partnerships, Airbus

Airbus: A global success story led by innovation

In 40 years Airbus has grown to become a global leader in the aerospace sector, with a turnover of ~ €30Bn and employing 55,000 people in xx countries. This remarkable growth has been led by product innovation and underpinned by investment. This investment has been made in industrial means, providing high value and long term jobs, and in Research and Technology, providing the feedstock for the next generation of new products. Key factors influencing these investment decisions are discussed, focussing on the United Kingdom context.

Andreas Pelz, Global Chief of Service Engineering, Rolls-Royce plc

Role of service engineering and job creation in the UK

Andreas will outline the definition of high-value activities and the explanation why this is vital for the job creation in the UK and Europe. Rolls-Royce will be taken as an example to show how the unique position as an Original Equipment Manufacturer helps to fulfill the complex customer requirements in a high-tech industry. It will be shown what support is needed from universities and governments. Finally, a comparison / differences to Germany will be shown.

Philip Greenish, Chief Executive, The Royal Academy of Engineering

Engineering future growth

A strong manufacturing sector is central to a strong, balanced economy, and engineering is a key component.  The UK’s national academy for engineering has a profound interest in manufacturing and in the creation of value within the economy through engineering.  Philip Greenish will set out how the Academy supports the UK’s engineering and manufacturing performance by nurturing engineering education and skills; encouraging entrepreneurship and innovation; supporting world-class, commercially useful research; raising the profession’s profile; influencing national policy and harnessing the strengths of the engineering profession.

Robin Cartwright, KPMG partner, London

Manufacturing Sector:  Where is the opportunity for UK plc?

This presentation will look objectively at which parts of the UK manufacturing economy might perform best in the coming years. The following questions will be considered:

* How has the UK’s manufacturing history shaped its current footprint?
* What is the ‘health’ of the sector today, and where are UK plc’s strengths and weaknesses
* What is the macro view of the opportunity – where is there demand for UK manufacturing’s skillset?
* What is the outlook for the sector, and where is the ‘upside’?

Chris Cassley, Economics and Enterprise Directorate, CBI

CBI Manufacturing Vision and Ambitions

Chris Cassley's presentation will take a look at the CBI's vision and ambitions for UK manufacturing and what actions are needed from both government and business in order to ensure our manufacturing base continues to be at the forefront of economic development, while creating the industrial capability we need for future sustainable growth both at home and abroad.

Professor Sir Mike Gregory, Institute of Manufacturing, University of Cambridge

Capturing Value from Emerging Industries

Capturing value from new ideas and opportunities is essential to the growth of the manufacturing economy. This presentation will cover new approaches to understanding the dynamics of emerging industries that offer the opportunity for more effective management and exploitation of new ideas.

Dr Margareta Groth, Head, Manufacturing and Materials, VINNOVA, Sweden

Private Public Cooperation in Manufacturing Research in Sweden

This talk will present some ongoing initiatives in Sweden on private public partnerships in manufacturing research. There have been joint research programs running since 2005, with a permanent program in place from 2009. One of the major benefits of the program is the increased cooperation between companies. These programmes are run by the Swedish Governmental Agency for Innovation Systems together with industry. The talk will also present new initiatives regarding Swedish challenge driven Innovation programs that will open in early May.

The event details, including programme and presentation summaries can be viewed here