APRIL 2019 COVER STORY
17
FLOWERS
OF SCOTLAND
MM spent a week north of the border to discover
how Scottish manufacturers can help put the
nation back on the global industrial map
BY CHRIS BECK ROUNDTABLE IMAGES IAIN McLEAN
SMAS Conference, Shields
had decried Scotland’s – and
the UK’s – reticence to adopt
Industry 4.0 practices. He
pointed to statistics that
demonstrated how, were UK
levels of automation brought
up to European average levels,
it would result in a 22% uplift
in productivity, and a 7%
increase in employment.
That message was echoed
at the roundtable by Yan
Tiefenbrun, managing
director of Castle Precision
Engineering. As befits a highprecision
firm specialising in
supplying the global aerospace
industry, Castle has been at
www.manufacturingmanagement.co.uk
Scotland is famed the world over for
its manufacturing prowess – from
Harris Tweed to warships, the country
has long been a hotbed of industrial
excellence. However, in recent years, it
has slipped behind growing economies
in the Far East, leaving once-bustling factories
and shipyards standing empty and derelict, and
Scottish manufacturing looking for new ways to
re-discover its heyday.
Regaining some of that lost ground is possible,
but it won’t come without a radical change in
the way many manufacturers operate, especially
when it comes to productivity. Government
figures indicate that Scotland currently sits in
the third quartile of productivity amongst OECD
members – something that hasn’t gone unnoticed.
Speaking at the annual conference of the Scottish
Manufacturing Advisory Service (SMAS) in
February, Nick Shields, SMAS director, spelled
out the potential rewards of getting it right. “If
Scotland could increase its productivity to the
next quartile, it would result in a £5,000 payrise
for every worker,” he said. “The 21st century has
brought with it the ability to consume ‘stuff’
instantly. However, this has had a dramatic effect
on productivity.”
Despite all this, the country’s manufacturers
still punch well above their weight. Despite
employing just 8% of the workforce, Scottish
industry accounts for over half of its exports.
The opportunity for Scottish manufacturing,
then, is significant, and finding ways to maximise
its potential was the topic of discussion at a
roundtable debate hosted in Glasgow by
MM, in association with SMAS.
Industry 4.0Õs role
Some would say that investing in technology
would be the easiest way to kick-start
Scottish manufacturing. Indeed, at the
Aniko G Enderle /stock.adobe.com
/www.manufacturingmanagement.co.uk
/stock.adobe.com