Last week, the IfM hosted the first of a series of ‘Make it Here’ events, which aim to build the manufacturing network and community by sharing local, national and international trends and capabilities, and enabling closer links between manufacturers, their customers and suppliers.

Representatives from three companies based in the East of England spoke about their
experiences of manufacturing in the UK:

• Inca Digital, a high-tech company specialising in inkjet printing, attributed its success to the expertise it could call on in the Cambridge area
• Youngman, which used to be heavily reliant on manual labour and welding, decided to use automation to lower its costs rather than moving its manufacturing outside the UK –  and remains 100% British
• Frank Dale Foods, a food manufacturer with a very short supply chain, sources the best products they can find locally.

Presentations were followed by an open discussion and a brainstorming session to decide what the next steps should be for the ‘Make it Here’ initiative. Suggestions for future activities included encouraging ‘job swapping’ to learn more about the way other companies manage their operations, outreach activities to get children in schools interested, in order to get their parents interested as well, and giving opportunities for collaboration more visibility.

About 80 professionals attended the event, which was followed by informal networking with complimentary food and drinks.

Details of the next event in the series of three will be shared soon.

Click here to see a selection of images from the evening.