Drives & Controls October 2022

NEWS n 5 UK manufacturers battle with the City to attract vital digital skills UK MANUFACTURERS ARE having to compete with the financial sector and other high-paying parts of the economy to recruit the data specialists that they need to drive the move to digitalisation. A new survey by the British manufacturers’ group Make UK and the accountancy firm Sage reveals that more than a quarter (27%) of UK manufacturers say that they need data analysts to help them make the transition to the digital era. According to the report, 2030 Skills: Closing the Gap , companies are now “desperate” to recruit the best qualified technical engineers and data experts to ensure that new automation projects are as successful as possible. It estimates that there are currently 95,000 manufacturing vacancies, costing the UK economy £7.7bn a year – a daily loss to the country’s GDP of £21m. Half of British manufacturers report that they cannot find the talent their businesses need locally, and 62% fear that it will not be easy to find the skills they need in the run-up to 2030. Automation, digitalisation and environmental sustainability are top priorities for investment among manufacturers, with 58% of companies planning to recruit engineering technicians while 61% want to hire production and process engineers. Half of the manufacturers report that offering flexible working has helped them to recruit and retain workers, while almost all (90%) now offer flexible arrangements to non-production staff. However, more than a quarter are sticking to rigid shift patterns for their production staff. The report calls for a Training Investment Allowance which, it says, would boost skills creation with a tax rebate on the costs of upskilling existing employees. It says manufacturers want tax relief on investing in training in ways that are easy to understand and implement. “Government should also look to urgently create an Employer Training Fund, funded by a portion of unspent Apprenticeship Levy funds, to support the upskilling and retraining of existing employees in critical skills as well as providing support to bring through the next generation of talent through routes such as T Levels for manufacturers to train up straight from school,”suggests Make UK CEO, Stephen Phipson. “This would also be the time to introduce apprenticeship incentives for areas of skills shortages, where targeted incentive payments are made available for apprenticeship courses (standards) in those skills areas where supply is most scarce.” https://www.makeuk.org/home /insights/reports/2022/09/22/ 2030-skills-closing-the-gap www.drivesncontrols.com October 2022 THE UNIVERSITY OF NOTTINGHAM has become the first UK institution to create an independent business for industrialising electrical motors and drive systems. The new Nottingham Drive Specialist Services (NDSS) facility will offer services to companies around the world, providing development, manufacturing and testing for motors and drives. Based at the university’s new Power Electronics and Machines Centre (PEMC), NDSS will offer a service spanning the entire lifecycle of projects – from design through to manufacture and testing – as well as offering access to more than £20m-worth of equipment. The service is being funded by several sources, including Research England, Getting Building Fund, D2N2, the Wolfson Foundation, and the Driving the Electric Revolution Industrialisation Centre (DER-IC). “Over the past 25 years, we have built up a store of intellectual property on this incredibly difficult subject area, and making this easily accessible and available for companies to benefit from is a key part of what we are doing,” says Dr Hitendra Hirani, sales director and general manager of the DER- IC programme at the University of Nottingham. “This initiative is really about breaking down the barriers to engaging with the university and making our facilities and knowledge available for societal benefit,” adds Professor Chris Gerada, Professor of Electrical Machines and lead for the University’s research and innovation initiatives. www.nottingham.ac.uk/ndss/index.aspx Nottingham University launches motors and drives consultancy The University of Nottingham’s new motors and drives service will have access to more than £20m of equipment. Image: University of Nottingham