Welcome to the Friday Brief for 13 June 2014.
The FIFA football World Cup kicked off this week in Brazil and will no doubt be eagerly followed in the weeks ahead. A survey commissioned by Croner, however, shows that as many as 25% of 25-34 year old men may take unauthorised absence from work during the World Cup. The research indicates that 13% of working Britons would be tempted to call in sick if one of the England games clashes with work and their employer had not offered them the option of watching it on TV at work or the opportunity to work flexibly. Interestingly, 60% of employers agree that allowing staff time to work flexibly to watch a major sporting event is important and ultimately boosts productivity and morale among employees. A further 55% agreed that sporting and cultural events provide an opportunity for them to strengthen their company culture and build goodwill among employees.
The Advances in Machining event on 24 June is just over a week away and we urge you to apply for a place or you will be disappointed. The MTA is partnering with the AMRC to organise the event Advances in Machining as part of the Global Manufacturing Festival taking place 24th-25th June in Sheffield. Advances in Machining features a major conference focusing on the future of machining and emerging technologies with leading speakers from across the manufacturing technologies sector. Visitors will be able to view live demonstrations including the latest tooling, toolholders and toolpart cutting technology. The event will also include the Manufacturing Dinner on 24 June, a superb networking opportunity. We have full registration details in the Friday Brief.
We welcome CTR Future as a new member to the MTA this week. The Northamptonshire based company designs, manufactures and supply’s CNC laser cutting, engraving and marking machines. Since 2012 CTR Future has both designed and manufactured its range of laser cutting systems and engraving machines, making the Company one of the few that can claim British manufacture of this type of machinery.
We have news of the opening of a new factory by Beakbane Ltd. The £1.2 million factory in Kidderminster will improve work flows, efficiency and extra capacity to meet a growing UK and international order book.
The economic news this week shows continued growth of UK manufacturing output which grew by +0.4% in April alone and, on a 3-month rolling basis is now +4.0% higher than it was a year ago. This represents faster growth than is being recorded for the economy as a whole.
The MTA’s new Chief Executive Officer, James Selka, will be speaking at the Smarter Factories conference on 19 June at the Crowne Plaza Hotel at the NEC Birmingham. James Selka will be presenting on ‘How are you going to make the future?’. We have more details in the Friday Brief including how to book your place at this landmark event.
We also have news about briefings being organised by the public-private partnership Finance Birmingham. The briefings are aimed at SMEs in the West Midlands looking to tap into funding for expansion.
There is a reminder to members to complete their MTA Business Survey returns. Your co-operation will help make the Survey more representative of the sector we represent.
Have a good weekend.