NOVEMBER /DECEMBER 2020 ROUND-UP
Did you hear... The best soundbites from around the industry
“This project will place Lancashire as a leader in innovation-driven, sustainable
economic growth and will act as a catalyst for further investment.”
Luke Hall, Minister of State for Regional Growth and Local Government, says Lancashire
can lead UK manufacturing as construction begins on the £20m AMRC North West
“Success and growth in the regions will be achieved by giving local stakeholders,
businesses and industry the power to work together to make decisions quickly.”
Mike Thornton, partner and head of manufacturing at RSM, calls for a regionalised
approach to economic recovery as part of a major new report in conjunction with Make UK.
Nestlé explores
plastic recycling
Nestlé UK and Ireland
has joined forces with
chemical recycling
company, Plastic
Energy to develop a
plastic recycling plant.
The two companies
will come together to
explore the scope for
the first commercialscale
facility of its kind
in the country.
Plastic Energy, which
already has two similar
recycling plants in
Spain, uses and
develops specialist
recycling technology to
transform traditionally
hard-to-recycle
plastic waste, such
as confectionery
wrappers, dry pet food
pouches and breakfast
cereal bags, into
recycled oils called
TACOIL, which are then
used as a replacement
for fossil oils to make
food-grade plastics.
A preliminary study
into the possibility of
developing the new
plant in the UK is being
conducted by Plastic
Energy, partially funded
by Nestlé UK and
Ireland. It began in
early November and
will take around six
months to complete.
Pic of the month BLK BOX
BLK BOX, one of Europe’s largest manufacturers of gym equipment, is creating 16 new jobs
and investing almost £2 million in expanding its manufacturing capabilities to meet growing
demand for its products and services. Founded eight years ago by entrepreneur Greg Bradley
(pictured, above right), BLK BOX is headquartered in Belfast’s Titanic Quarter where it currently
employs over 60 people in a manufacturing, distribution and office facility. The investment,
which is supported by Invest Northern Ireland, will see the company install new laser cutting
equipment and a state-of-the-art paint line. The company has seen sales soar in recent
months as people exercised at home during lockdown. It already supplies equipment to
leading sportspeople, including World Superbike champion Jonathan Rea, Premier League
footballers, and international sports teams including the Irish rugby team.
Make UK calls for long-term recovery plan
On behalf of the nation’s
manufacturing sector, Make
UK has called on government
to publish a clear, long-term
economic action plan to help
businesses steer a path through
the long haul of pandemic.
Publishing its own Prepare,
Implement, Lead plan, Make
UK backed its view that the
crisis has many months still to
run, with data from a survey of
almost 200 companies showing
over a third (36.8%) believe it
will take longer than a year to
return to normal trading, whilst
over a quarter (26.8%) believe
it will take between six and 12
months. Just 26% of companies
expect to be at full operating
capacity by January.
Make UK has called for the
establishment of an Industry
Action Group to feed data
into COBRA on what level of
support is needed to protect
businesses, employees and
communities. At the same time,
government must also work
with key trading partners to
ensure borders remain open and
key freight routes protected.
This must be followed
by a clear exit strategy with
collective agreement
between industry, scientists
and government on when
lockdown ends, including a
fully functioning test, trace
and isolate system that
removes the time delays
that employers and their
employees currently face.
Looking forward, as well
as avoiding the disastrous
prospect for industry of a
no-deal Brexit, government
must set out a ‘ready to
go’ strategy to fire up
demand and help repair the
economic damage.
www.manufacturingmanagement.co.uk 7
Nestlé UK & Ireland
/www.manufacturingmanagement.co.uk