JANUARY 2019 MANUFACTURING CHAMPIONS
has an image problem – why else would they see
it as low-paid and low-ranking. 56th isn’t a number
to be proud of, by any stretch of the imagination.
We’re better than that.”
Luckily, this year’s winners demonstrate that
the industry is in safe hands. From Manufacturing
Leader winner, Joan Stewart of Hotter Shoes,
whose leadership approach saw the factory make
a record number of shoes (55,000 in one week), to
Energy & Environment champion, A. Schulman’s
Michael Vernall, whose approach to recycling and
energy consumption saw the site save £5,000 on
waste collection and disposal costs, the ingenuity
and innovation was clear to see.
Also present was David Atkinson, head of
manufacturing at Lloyds Bank, who rode in on
his black horse as a last-minute replacement
for the scheduled speaker, who cancelled at the
last minute. Not that anyone there minded – his
speech heaped praise on the industry, saying that
its reach extends further than many appreciate.
“Manufacturing directly contributes around
10% of GDP to the UK economy. Around 2.6m
jobs are directly created by the sector and 44%
of all UK exports come from the sector,” he said.
“This is a sector that really does help create
rebalanced, long term, sustainable economic
growth… and let’s not forget about the broader
impact that the sector has.
There are many other sectors
that rely heavily on the success
of UK manufacturing for their
own success.”
As the EEF report
demonstrates, the British
public can often be sceptical
about the scale of the UK’s
manufacturing industry. Many
believe that working in a factory
means dirty, low-paid and
repetitive work that is of little
value to the wider economy.
That couldn’t be further
from the truth, as this year’s
Manufacturing Champions
winners demonstrate.
Indeed, as Beck concluded
in his speech, the winners –
and the entire shortlist – should
be at the vanguard of waving the
fl ag for the industry whenever
they can.
“We all need to be better at
talking up what you guys do so
well,” he said. “We may be past
the stereotype of smoky stacks
and oily rags, but there’s still
a perception of poorly paid,
relatively mundane work that
nobody really wants to be doing.
I’ll throw down a gauntlet to
you guys, then: next time you’re
out and about, tell people that
you work in manufacturing,
and you’re proud of it. Because
we’re proud of you.”
The team at Manufacturing
Management would like to
extend our congratulations
to all the 2018 Manufacturing
Champions winners and
shortlisted fi nalists, as well as
our headline sponsors, The
Manufacturing Institute and
supporting organisation, EEF.
Now turn the page to fi nd
out more about the Champions
Class of 2018…
The 2018
shortlist was
the strongest
to date
Sponsoring the Manufacturing
Champions Awards was
certainly one of the highlights
of the year for everyone here at
The Manufacturing Institute.
The venue looked
wonderful, the production was
superb and, most importantly
of all, we had the chance to
see some of the best
manufacturers in the country
earning the praise and
recognition they deserve.
There are some amazing
people doing incredible things
in UK manufacturing right now,
and the Manufacturing
Champions Awards served to
highlight their achievements on
a big stage. Occasions such as
this are extremely important in
promoting the industry overall,
and it was an honour to play a
part in the day.
We’d like to extend our
congratulations to Michael
Vernall, Tom Hillman, Lynn
Willacy, Phil Draper and
Georgie Molloy, who all picked
up individual accolades, as well
as the winners at Devro and
Crowcon Detection
Instruments. Lastly, we’d like to
say a huge well done to Joan
Stewart – the operations
director at Hotter who scooped
our sponsored award for
Manufacturing Leader 2018.
www.manufacturingmanagement.co.uk 33
/www.manufacturingmanagement.co.uk