What are manufacturing technologies?

Manufacturing Technologies now encompasses far more than the original Metalworking machinery and equipment it used to define. The machine tool has been at the heart of British innovation since the days of the industrial revolution. But current industrial production and processes include an ever increasing range of technologies such as metrology, software, drives and controls, etc., not to mention
the exciting advances in new materials and the need to cut, form and bend these effectively.

These new processes and techniques provide the advances in productivity, performance, flexibility, accuracy and quality which could only be imagined three decades ago. Just as important they are allowing UK and other developed economies' manufacturers to remain competitive in the increasingly globalised market for engineering products. Indeed, despite the rapid development of low-wage economies, British and Western manufacturing technologies continue to grow and innovate at a healthy rate. They continue to lead rather than follow
the latest trends in manufacturing.

Manufacturing Technologies is a truely international sector, reflecting the markets it serves and the globalised sourcing of parts and components for the aerospace, automotive, oil and gas, medical device, defence as well as many other industries. It no longer makes sense to talk in terms of British Manufacturing Technology being distinct from that which we import. The UK is home to some of the most well known international 'brands' from Europe, Japan and the USA, who have built manufacturing plants here to tap into the tradition of engineering expertise available in the British
Isles, reflecting again the end-user community. Likewise many UK companies now have facilities as far away as China and India, as well as closer to home.

For British manufacturers from across all industries to suceed they must have access to the best Manufacturing Technologies available, whatever their
origin. Imported macinery and equipment has, and will continue to play a vital role in the success of UK manufacturing by enabling it to use the very latest software, controls, tooling workholding and other innovations, wherever they are made.

The interdependence of global sourcing can be seen in the many turnkey packages which incorporate Technologies from many different countries,
but which are combined to produce yet more innnovation in production methods or productivity.

Manufacturing Technologies for the metalworking sectors remains at the cutting edge of innovation and at the heart of manufacturing. The UK is
proud to maintain its rightful place in the vanguard of countries who lead the way.

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