COVER STORY FEBRUARY 2019
At the heart of the AMRC sits Factory 2050,
a striking, circular building that looks not
dissimilar to a UFO. It is the UK’s first state-
of-the-art factory dedicated to collaborative
research into digital production techniques
and high-value manufacturing.
Ben Morgan, head of the Integrated
Manufacturing Group, based at Factory 2050,
explains the role the centre plays in pushing the
boundaries of UK manufacturing. “In the late
1990s, Keith Ridgway and Adrian Allen came up
with the idea that in order to regenerate the region,
which had seen significant decline in the preceding
couple of decades, it needed to become a hub for
innovation,” he says. “They knew that to achieve
that, they needed cutting-edge technology and a
group of talented engineers. They therefore began
transitioning leading research from academia into
industry. UK universities have always come up with
fantastic ideas, but they often get lost and don’t
make the impact they should. The AMRC was set
up to ensure that potential was being realised.”
The AMRC was opened in 2001, in conjunction
with Boeing. Since then, companies large and
small have come through its doors to benefit from
expert advice and spending time with the latest
technologies. Morgan calls Factory 2050 “a big
toybox for manufacturers, where they can try things
out, make mistakes and find out what works.”
“We are totally open,” he continues. “The same
equipment being used by companies like Boeing
and McLaren can also be used by SMEs. The
government has also supported the work we do.
They have realised, especially since the financial
crisis, that manufacturing is vital to a healthy
economy. This creates a win-win-win situation:
government sees a return on investment, and the
PR coup of big companies investing in Yorkshire;
the university has a chance to put its research into
practice; and businesses benefit from access to
cutting-edge technologies.”
It’s not just the equipment that has brought
McLaren and Boeing to the AMRC, however.
Via its Apprentice Training Centre, it provides
a vital pipeline of talent, ready-made for the
companies in the area. Boeing, for instance,
currently has around 30 apprentices in its ranks, at
various stages of their development. “Recruitment
and acquisition of talent are the most important
things to get right in order for a new company – or
a new factory – to succeed,” says Needham. “The
Training Centre has produced a workforce that
consists heavily of machinist apprentices, aged
between 16 and 19. Once they come to us, they will
have the fundamentals of machining and machine
operation. We can then teach them the relevant
skills needed at Boeing.”
For McLaren, says Nic Aoidh, recruiting in
Sheffield is a lot easier than recruiting for the
company’s main manufacturing site, at Woking
in Surrey. “Surrey isn’t a natural manufacturing
heartland in the way Sheffield is,” she explains.
“We’ve always acknowledged, though, that we will
still need to upskill our recruits. It’s a new site, with
new technologies and processes; teaching people to
do new things is part and parcel of that.”
Morgan says that this focus on future talent is a
vital part of the AMRC’s remit. “Companies need
new minds and fresh sets of eyes to best implement
cutting-edge ideas,” he says. “The apprentices
we’ve helped train up will have been using the
latest technology in some innovative ways. They
can take these ideas into companies like Boeing
and McLaren and provide a new way of working.”
A global footprint
As both Needham and Nic Aiodh are keen to stress,
Sheffield wasn’t chosen simply, in Needham’s
words, “to give UK manufacturing a good-news
story.” Both McLaren and Boeing have complex,
global supply chains, and the new factories have
to fit seamlessly into them, without delaying
production further up or down the chain.
For Boeing, in particular, establishing a site
in Europe may look odd. The actuators made by
the site are shipped to Boeing’s site in Portland,
Oregon (the designated ‘sister site’ of Sheffield),
where they form part of the wider wing assembly.
The wings are then sent onto the main plant in
Renton for final assembly.
It appears slightly counterintuitive, then, that
the company would set up a factory supplying
such a vital component on the opposite side
of the Atlantic. In fact, explains Needham, the
inconvenience of the distance between Sheffield
and Renton is far outweighed by the advantages
that being in Europe can bring. “Despite the fact
Sheffield represents
Boeing’s first foray into
European manufacturing
Both Boeing and McLaren have used
the AMRC’s Apprentice Training
Centre to source skilled workers
100+
companies are
partnered with
the AMRC
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