As the world looks to recover from the coronavirus pandemic, supply chain support and long-term assistance are the top wishes for UK manufacturing SMEs, according to a new report.
Supply chains. Credit: Travel mania / Shutterstock
Global supply chains were battered during the pandemic, and attempts to make them stronger could make businesses more profitable. Credit: Travel mania / Shutterstock
Over three-quarters of the 335 firms quizzed by the Manufacturing Growth Programme (MGP) suggested government support will be helpful should the industry look to drag itself out of the downturns faced during the pandemic and make the most of the long-anticipated UK Shared Prosperity Fund.
Read more: Can robotics solve our supply chain headaches?
The fund is set to be rolled out by local authorities following a series of feasibility tests in early February. The fund stands to boost pay, improve local services and "restore a sense of community" in a bid to return to a degree of normalcy following nearly two years out of the loop.
The MGP report suggests attempts to make supply chains more resilient could make businesses more profitable while grants to help them buy new equipment and invest in new technologies to support digitalisation would make the biggest difference to their ongoing performance.
The survey is reportedly the largest the firm has ever undertaken. It suggests that management teams wanted access to specialist external advice and funding to drive profitability (68%), increase sales (62%) and boost productivity (58%).
75% of respondents felt that leadership and management training is beneficial, while 83% said they wanted business support to be delivered by experts with significant industry experience.
Perhaps more unsurprisingly, given recent trends and shifts towards greener businesses and pushes towards sustainability, a little over a quarter of SMEs hinted assistance would help them move towards net-zero, meet new sustainability targets and "make the most" of a green economy.
“We are operating in unique times, with companies looking to recover from the aftereffects of the pandemic but against a volatile backdrop of supply chain disruption and rising inflationary pressures. It is critical that Manufacturing bosses continue to receive specialist support to rebuild their growth strategies,” according to Dean Barnes, the MGP's regional director.
“Manufacturing is responsible for 10% of national GDP and still accounts for half of the UK’s goods exported and nearly two-thirds of all R&D activity in this country. These reasons alone mean we need to understand what industry wants and needs to grow", he added.
The UK Shared Prosperity Fund comes as part of the UK government's wider scheme to "level up" the British economy in the wake of the pandemic and bring it closer to its green targets.
The UK likes to style itself as a global leader on the road to net-zero, but it still has a long way to go before the nation is in reach of its climate targets.
The Levelling Up White Paper released earlier this year lays out plans that manufacturers, from across all sub-sectors, are automating, decarbonising and building resilience by 2030 as part of plans to reach these goals.
In addition, much of the funding will be handled locally, allowing for areas to work on their respective strengths. This includes turning the North East of England into a tech and automotive hub.
However, bolstering supply chains will be essential in ensuring the UK's economy can bounce back.
Read more: How lean manufacturing is driving sustainability initiatives in 2022
“With funding due to change, it’s now time for Government to build on this good work, whilst also listening to what firms are telling us – most noticeably to make it easier to access capital grants and for the support to be longer-term and strategic", said Jane Galsworthy, the managing director of consultancy firm Oxford Innovation Advice, who help deliver the MGP.
“We have given the powers that be a blueprint for how they deliver industry-specific support that tackles low levels of productivity, failure of SMEs to seek assistance and lack of innovation in our smaller manufacturers", she added.
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