we’ve not had a manufacturing base in Europe
before, Boeing has been sourcing parts from the
UK for 80 years,” he says. “We have an established
network of trusted, quality suppliers, and the
infrastructure in the UK and across Europe that
allows us to be successful.”
The MCTC won’t be fully operational until
2020, by which point it will be making the tubs
for all new McLaren cars – part of the company’s
so-called ‘Track 25’ business plan is to introduce
18 new cars by 2025. At that stage, 58% of the car,
by value, will be sourced from UK-based Tier 1
suppliers. Nic Aiodh explains that this is another
reason behind the move to Sheffield.
“We don’t want to ‘switch off’ the relationship
with our Austrian supplier,” she says. “They’ve
been kept fully in the loop with regards to the
new factory. The partners we have, whether in
the UK or elsewhere, have to share our culture
for excellence and be willing to work in such a
demanding environment. It’s vital for us to find the
right partners – and it just so happens that a lot of
those are in the UK. We’re a small company in the
grand scheme of the automotive industry, and we
don’t have the resources to have offices all over the
world. Therefore, to have trusted suppliers on our
doorstep is a massive advantage.”
Rising to the challenge
Both new factories are the result of years of
planning. However, the importance of both sites
to their supply chains meant they have had to be
up and running without causing disruption to the
wider organisations. Boeing Sheffield has felt this
pressure particularly strongly. Compared to most
new factory builds of this scale, the site has shot
up: it took just 21 months between the decision
to build in Sheffield and the factory opening its
doors. “The quote going around local authorities is
that ours was the fastest planning permission ever
granted in the area,” says Needham.
And this is just as well. Aircraft orders are often
placed years in advance, meaning Boeing knows the
demand that is coming down the pipeline. It just so
happens that the Boeing 737 is the biggest-selling
commercial aircraft the world has ever seen. “That
aircraft is being built at a staggering rate, and the
company has just seen the strongest build year in
its history – but it’s still being outpaced by orders,”
says Needham. “The pace for 737 manufacture will
only increase, and it’s our challenge to rise to that.”
Another major challenge that faced Needham
and the team in the early days was the fact
that they were, in effect, flying blind. The short
turnaround from initial concept to opening meant
that the factory’s management had to purchase
machinery while still working out a manufacturing
plan. As Needham explains, “it was like needing
to buy a car without knowing whether you need
a two-seater sports car or a 4x4. You just need to
buy one – any one – now because of the lead times.
We’re very confident, though, that we’ve made the
best possible decision on the machinery we have.”
For McLaren, the majority of challenges
FEBRUARY 2019 COVER STORY
The High Value Manufacturing
Catapult
The AMRC is part of the High Value Manufacturing Catapult, a
network of sites across the UK that are at the forefront of research
into the latest manufacturing techniques and technologies. The
Catapult network also acts as a bridge between industry and
academia, allowing companies access to world-class facilities
as a test bed for ideas. There are seven Catapult sites across the
country, each with a specific speciality.
AMRC,
GLASGOW
NAMRC,
SHEFFIELD
MTC,
COVENTRY
CPI,
REDCAR
AMRC,
SHEFFIELD
NCC,
BRISTOL
WMG,
WARWICK
www.manufacturingmanagement.co.uk 21
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