The Centre engages with industry in research, education and training, and consultancy.

Research

Members of the Centre are keen to explore research opportunities with companies and company departments with a professional interest in the Centre’s research themes.

Most of our research is carried out on live projects of real strategic interest to partner companies.

The Action Research methodologies we often use provide outputs for partners in terms of action resulting from the research and research outcomes for us. Research outcomes often emerge from reflecting with managers on the issues and methods used to evaluate their usefulness and ways in which they might be improved. This reflection provides managers with in-depth understanding of the strategic issues important to them and their company.

We produce a half-yearly newsletter and organise a yearly collaborators' workshop focused on the Centre's research which also contains feedback from partner companies, much debate, and opportunities to network with other industrialists.

Education and training

Members regularly teach at:

• Public events organised by the Institute, see courses and events.
• Events organised by other institutions world-wide
• Bespoke workshops and training and education for particular companies in the area of manufacturing strategy and performance. Typically they are aimed at the operations or manufacturing function from Corporate to Plant Manager levels . But they can also be aimed at commercially experienced Directors needing a better understanding of these functions

Consulting

The normal focus of our consulting activities is to act as process facilitators helping company management teams to tackle issues like:

• Developing their manufacturing strategy to provide structure, prioritisation and new ideas for their improvement plans
• Taking a resource-based view perspective of their core competences in order to improve and sustain their performance.
• Industrial Make versus Buy decisions
• Performance Measurement System Design
• Translating Business Strategy into Action Plans