Fast facts: Bloodhound project
ROUND-UP JANUARY 2019
In Depth 1,000
Bloodhound’s
target speed in
miles per hour
4.5
135,000
horsepower of
Bloodhound – 25k
more than the QEII
football pitches
covered per second
while at top speed
Bloodhound land speed record
project rescued at eleventh hour
In a dramatic reversal of fortunes, a
buyer has been found for Bloodhound,
the supersonic land speed world
record project, weeks after the company
was wound up due to a lack of funds.
It was reported in early December
that the Bristol-based team needed “a
few million” to bail out the project, which
aimed to build the fi rst car capable of
topping 1,000mph. The vehicle itself was
valued at £250,000.
However, by 17 December, Yorkshire
businessman, Ian Warhurst, the MD of
Melett, an aftermarket manufacturer
of precision engineered turbochargers,
parts and repair kits for the automotive
industry, had bought the business and
all assets to keep the project on track.
An engineer by training, Warhurst
said: “I have been overwhelmed by the
level of interest and messages of goodwill
following the news that I have bought
Bloodhound. It’s clear how much this
unique British project means to people,
all around the world. My family and I
have been supporters too for many years
and I am delighted to have been able to
safeguard the business and assets.
“Having built a successful engineering
business I also know how hard it can
be recruiting people with the right
skills, and how important it is to inspire
young people about science, technology,
engineering and maths. Bloodhound
brings these subjects to life in the most
exciting way possible, and I want to
ensure it can continue doing that into
the future.”
Piloted by land speed record veteran,
Andy Green (main picture), Bloodhound
has so far managed to reach 200mph in
trials at Newquay Airport in 2017 (inset).
A 24 square-mile area of desert in South
Africa has been cleared ahead of the
record-breaking run, which had originally
been planned for 2020.
Brexit fears haunting
UK industry, says EEF
UK manufacturers are operating under
the ‘spectre of Brexit’, resulting in over
half seeing more business risks than
opportunities in the year ahead,
according to the annual Senior Executive
Survey conducted by EEF and AIG.
The survey also shows that, whilst
companies still expect to see growth in
orders, as well as employment, in 2019,
they are much less confident than they
were a year ago, especially about
prospects for the UK economy.
The unknown consequences
surrounding Brexit mean that almost
three-quarters of manufacturers (72%)
say that leaving the EU is their biggest
source of uncertainty. Within this, over
four-fifths of companies (81%) identified
exchange rate volatility as a risk to their
business plan, with only one-fifth of
companies saying significant currency
movement was not a risk in 2019.
Furthermore, the impact of a weaker
Sterling bringing upward pressure on
input costs was also seen as a risk by
three-quarters of companies, countering
the oft-quoted assertion that a weaker
Sterling would be of universal benefit to
manufacturing. A previous EEF survey
backed this up with only 6% of
companies saying a weaker Sterling
would be of benefit.
“While companies are naturally
optimistic by their very nature, the
spectre of Brexit is now very front-ofmind
for manufacturers,” said EEF chief
executive, Stephen Phipson. “Business
is crying out for some certainty and
clarity on moving to a transition period
and will have watched the pre-Christmas
pantomime in parliament with dismay.
This situation cannot continue.”
Actions to mitigate the direct impact
of Brexit include an evaluation of
suppliers inside and outside the UK (68%
and 63% respectively) and stockpiling
components/raw materials. Over six in
ten companies are looking to stockpile
(62%) with 29% already doing so and a
further 33% planning to do so in 2019.
8 www.manufacturingmanagement.co.uk
/www.manufacturingmanagement.co.uk