n NEWS April 2025 www.drivesncontrols.com 10 ALMOST TWO THIRDS OF THE UK’s SME manufacturers want to grow into large businesses, which could contribute £83bn to the country’s manufacturing GVA (gross value added) over the next decade, propelling the UK from the world’s 12th-largest manufacturing to the 7th-largest, according to a new report from Make UK and Civitas. But the report warns that many manufacturers are unaware of support schemes designed to help them to grow. A third of SMEs do not know about the Business Growth Fund, while 37% are unaware of the British Business Bank. If more SMEs were to take advantage of these schemes, investment by Britain’s manufacturers would rise by £9.2bn, the report estimates. The 73-page report, The Growth Mission: A Blueprint for Scaling up SME Manufacturers, calls on the Government to drive growth by introducing a 150% capital allowance and by creating an enhanced Growth Enterprise Scheme (GEIS) to turbocharge the SMEs. Such tax reliefs would encourage the businesses to reinvest in their growth, raise productivity, and adopt new technologies, helping them scale-up, create jobs, and assist in achieving the government’s growth goals. An estimated 99% of the 250,000 active manufacturing businesses in the UK are micro and small-to-medium sized companies. The report reveals that four out of ve struggle to access nance during the “make or break” early stages of investment. Current support for SMEs comes mainly from The Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS) and the Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS). Both of these government initiatives are intended to encourage investment in small and early-stage companies by oering tax reliefs to investors, but the businesses must be less than seven years old to access them. However, setting up a factory and recruiting and training sta often takes more than seven years, so most start-up manufacturers are never in a position to access the funds designed to help them grow. Removing the seven-year limit would open-up the potential for investors to consider manufacturers with scale-up potential to access capital that was not available previously. Exporting into new markets is also dicult for SMEs, limiting their scale-up potential. If the government is to achieve its aim of being the fastest-growing G7 economy, the UK will need to increase its exports, the report suggests. At present, 22% of manufacturers export directly. According to the Make UK/Civitas research, 38% of SMEs say a lack of understanding of local regulations and bureaucracy is preventing them exporting, while 36% say they need better communication from government to improve their awareness of export advice and export nance support. “Using AI to leverage the wealth of data available in the UK to micro-target SMEs at exactly the right moment of their growth journey, where they will be most receptive to and benet from the types of support to boost scale-up success will dramatically deliver quick-re growth across the whole of the UK,” suggests Make UK CEO, Stephen Phipson. “Small and medium sized businesses already play a signicant part in contributing to growth but, with the right support, they could do even more. Helping these rms to export and use data to pinpoint growth potential could result in huge dividends for the economy.” SME manufacturers could give the UK economy a £83bn boost ABB HAS APPOINTED Susana Gonzalez as chief sales officer in the Machine Automation Division of its B&R Industrial Automation subsidiary. Until recently, Gonzalez led Rockwell Automation’s sales in the EMEA region. She succeeds Luca Galluzzi. Gonzalez brings more than 25 years of global experience in industrial automation and manufacturing, including roles in customer support, product management, and sales in the US, Asia, Europe, the Middle East and Africa. She will lead Austrian-based B&R's global sales organisation and serve as a member of the Division’s management team. “Susana’s extensive international experience and strategic approach make her an excellent fit for this role,” says Joerg Theis, president of ABB’s Machine Automation Division. “Her leadership will strengthen our customer focus and ensure we continue to deliver innovative solutions that address the evolving needs of our customers, while maintaining our commitment to quality and performance.” The main reasons that UK SME manufacturers give for not accessing public support. Source: Make UK / Civitas Gonzalez joins ABB’s B&R from Rockwell Automation Gonzalez has moved from Rockwell to B&R
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