A STRATEGIC BREAKTHROUGH? Since our previous issue, the Government has published its highly anticipated Industrial Strategy. It’s a substantial document. If you include its various annexes, it runs to more than 600 pages. It ranges far beyond manufacturing into areas such as the creative industries, financial services, and professional services – three of the eight sectors identified by the government as being potential “winners” for the UK economy over the coming decade. Another of those sectors is advanced manufacturing, to which the government is pledging £4.3bn in funding – including up to £2.8bn in R&D programmes over the next five years – to spur innovation, automation, digitisation and commercialisation. Sarah Jones, minister of state for industry, describes advanced manufacturing as “the backbone of our economy, directly supporting around 760,000 jobs and contributing more than £82bn gross value added to the UK economy every year. This is an industry that strengthens our national resilience, and drives prosperity across every region of our country.” But, she adds, “we must recognise the urgent need to maintain a competitive edge in an era of global competition and rapid technological change… Our vision is bold. By 2035, the UK will be recognised as the best place in the world to start, grow, and invest in advanced manufacturing.” Bold indeed! We have summarised some of the highlights of the Strategy on page 5 of this issue. And on page 56, Gambica’s Nikesh Mistry digs deeper into the Strategy and its implications. A cornerstone of the Strategy are its measures designed to tackle two of the biggest barriers facing UK industry – high electricity prices, and the long wait for grid connections. Under the proposals, more than 7,000 energy-intensive British businesses will see their electricity bills slashed by up to 25% from 2027. These businesses, which are said to support more than 300,000 skilled jobs, will be exempt from paying certain electricity industry levies, helping to level the playing field and make them more internationally competitive. The government is also increasing its support for the most energy-intensive firms – in sectors such as steel, chemicals and glass – by covering more of the electricity network charges that these businesses normally have to pay through the British Industry Supercharger. They currently get a 60% discount on those charges. From 2026, that will rise to 90%. This is certainly good news if your company is a “energy-intensive” business, or you are active in one of the eight favoured sectors. However, if you are not a big energy user, or your operate in a sector that has not been earmarked for success, the benefits may not be so clear. Still, there are other measures – such as the extension of the Made Smarter technology assistance scheme to an extra 5,500 SME manufacturers, and the creation of a series of robotics adoption hubs – that could prove attractive. Up to £99m of new funding will be made available for the Made Smarter Adoption programme from 2026 to help a further 5,500 small and medium-sized manufacturers in England to adopt new technologies. The robotics hubs are part of a new Robotics and Autonomous Systems (RAS) programme, which is promised an initial investment of £40m. They will offer the experts, equipment, and the connections needed to accelerate firms’ take-up of robots. The hubs will provide a one-stop-shop to help manufacturers to invest in RAS technologies. They are a welcome addition and might help to improve the UK’s dismal record so far in terms of its take-up of robots, compared to other industrialised nations. But how far will £40m go to change things? Stephen Phipson, CEO of of the manufactrers’ organisation, Make UK, has described the publication of the Industrial Strategy as “one of the most important days for British industry in a generation”. He adds that its publication demonstrates the government’s commitment “to honour its promises and tackle the major structural problems that have blighted UK manufacturing for so long”. The Government must be thrilled to receive this reaction. But, as with all wide-ranging programmes of this sort, only time will tell how many UK manufacturers will really benefit from the new Strategy. Tony Sacks, Editor n COMMENT Make it flexible. Make it sustainable. Make it OMRON. #MakeitOMRON Make the world better through creative manufacturing With our range of integrated manufacturing solutions, scale your business faster and sustainability.
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