EEF, the UK's Manufacturers' Organisation, has changed its name and identity to Make UK in order to better approach the unprecedented challenges and opportunities the country and its industrial sector is looking to in the years ahead such as Brexit, digitalisation, automation, AI and emerging markets.
The announcement was made at the National Manufacturing Conference on Tuesday at an event attended by the Chancellor Philip Hammond MP, Business Secretary Greg Clark MP and Leader of the Opposition Jeremy Corbyn MP, amongst others.
The move is intended to reflect the myriad political and socio-economic changes affecting the manufacturing sector.
Image: Greg Clark at the Make UK conference | Credit: Make UK
In a press release, Make UK said: "Britain makes amazing things, in vast quantities and of the very best quality. UK manufacturing is back on the global map, due to the brilliance of our companies which have made such a success of supply chains and the modern marvel of just-in-time logistics. And, after talking extensively over many months to our members, we know that Make UK reflects this new modern manufacturing world."
Stephen Phipson, CEO of Make UK commented: “We are immensely proud of the heritage that EEF has built up over the century plus, during which time it has fought for the rights and futures of British manufacturers around the whole of the UK, and now working with our sister organisation across the EU. Building on the old local federations, EEF has grown to a point where it represents 20,000 manufacturers around the country.
“But with the massive inroads of modern technology currently being injected into our sector, we felt that our name should be clear and say what we do.
“To ensure our members’ voices are best heard, we have introduced an exciting new way to get to issues which matter to our companies through the creation of Make UK’s new National Membership Board which will inform our future direction by considering the organisation’s policy priorities, member services and of course specialist support around key national problems such as skills and Brexit.”
Prime Minister Theresa May said of the change: "The UK has a proud manufacturing heritage, and the industry remains one of our biggest employers – driving productivity across the country. I look forward to working with Make UK to build the best business conditions for British manufacturers to allow them to continue to thrive in the future.”
Make UK represents over 20,000 companies of varying sizes from start-ups to SMEs to multinational corporations across engineering, manufacturing, technology and beyond.
The chair of Make UK, Dame Judith Hackitt CBE warned in her speech, however, that manufacturing initiatives risked being overshadowed by Brexit, and called on the Chancellor to increase investment in support programmes like Made Smarter and roll it out nationally as soon as possible.
Made Smarter is an investment programme between industry and government that forms part of the UK government's £1.1 billion Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund.
Dame Judith said: “The Industrial Strategy has spawned other very positive initiatives, in particular the Made Smarter campaign led by Juergen Maier from Siemens. It highlights how vital it is that the UK leads a new industrial revolution and makes the most of the rapid digitalisation of our manufacturing base. For Britain to thrive our SMEs must be equipped with the skills and technologies needed to make and export more and the pilot that has already been set up in the North West will make an important contribution to enabling SME uptake of technology such as artificial intelligence, automation, robotics and virtual reality."
She added: “It is critical that initiatives such as this do not become subsumed to Brexit and I would urge that further funding is made available at the earliest opportunity to ensure the pilot is rolled out across the rest of the UK.
The Chancellor Philip Hammond said that Made Smarter was a 'ground-breaking' pilot programme, adding that “…the point of piloting is to learn what works and what doesn’t. But I can absolutely promise you that what works will be rolled out in due course.”
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