Simon Griffiths: Sky’s the limit for aerospace
Jul 23 2010 By Simon Griffiths
It’s that time of the year again when aerospace businesses descend on the globally renowned Farnborough International Airshow. It gives them a unique chance to review the newest aircraft releases such as the Airbus A380 and F22 Raptor and to meet manufacturers with a view to picking up orders usually announced at the show.
The sector is still vitally important for the West Midlands despite some cynics suggesting that the lack of aircraft manufacturers in the region should see us refocusing our efforts elsewhere.
They couldn’t be further from the truth. A rich history – which includes the invention of the airplane and Sir Frank Whittle’s jet engine – has now been supplemented with a world class supply chain of more than 400 businesses and some of the world’s most progressive R&D facilities.
In fact, our companies are responsible for manufacturing anything from complete flight control systems to complex CNC machined parts in titanium.
That is why we have joined forces with the Midlands Aerospace Alliance to host a special stand for more than 20 West Midlands businesses to showcase their talents to the world at Farnborough. Sometimes you have to be seen to be heard.
Aerospace sales for the UK this year are up 5.4 per cent to £22.2 billion, with 70 per cent of that work ending up in the box marked export.
This is good news for our businesses, but the pace of change is so fast that we need to do everything we can to help them continue to compete for contracts that are often put out to international tender.
We have been working with about 100 manufacturers from the West Midlands through the Supply Chains in the 21st Century programme (SC21), with the aim of helping firms to increase their competitiveness, improve their quality and delivery performance and develop excellent supply chain relationships.
So, we will be hoping that the latest Farnborough Show results in significant new aircraft sales and that our local businesses can benefit from growth in their sector which seems to have fared better than others during the recession.
It’s an important lesson we need to learn and learn fast. Let’s get out there and shout about what the West Midlands has to offer, especially when we are producing so many amazing precision parts and systems for the aerospace sector every day.
* Simon Griffiths is the chief executive of the Manufacturing Advisory Service in the West Midlands
