Managing director of CT Production, Alan Trevarton, recognises a new drive creating demand for British manufactured goods.
Those working in the manufacturing industry will have noticed that there is a new drive creating demand for British manufactured goods. Some of this demand comes from a shift in the balance of the usual cost and quality considerations, however, it is also coming from people the world over seeking the flair and prestige of British designed goods. They now want them made to British quality standards, in Britain.
One odd factor is that much of this desire comes from the very countries associated with the low cost manufacture of goods that we see in our shops or on-line. The wealth of middle classes in such countries is increasing and they want to demonstrate this wealth by owning prestige goods.
Government support
In addition to these factors, the present UK government is promoting UK manufacturing and exports, realising that this is what actually creates wealth and employment, as opposed to supermarkets or call centres. As a result, there are more UK corporates and local government bodies giving preference to buying British manufactured goods. In fact, the momentum is increasing to a level that has not been seen since the ‘I’m Backing Britain’ campaign of long ago.
This is obviously good for the economy and everyone in the UK. Many goods that a few years ago would automatically have been sent for manufacture in Eastern Europe or Asia are no longer leaving our shores, except for export after UK manufacture!
A huge proportion of goods made in the UK are partly or wholly manufactured via contract manufacturers, with many companies in this industry benefitting from the current surge in demand. CT Production, for example, makes a complete high volume consumer product from customer’s order to distributor, which is exported worldwide, and the customer would not dream of offshoring. CT also makes complete low energy lighting products for a customer who supplies local government bodies that prefer to buy UK goods. Other products that have similar stipulations are remote energy metering, driver insurance monitoring products, fuel efficiency monitoring products and more.
Review savings
Some Far Eastern manufactured goods can have lower prices because they are predominantly designed for manufacture using manual labour, which at present can be cheaper offshore. Anyone considering re-shoring a product should therefore review the design before asking for a competitive UK quote, or at least ask a UK manufacturer for feedback.
For some time to come, very high volume consumer products manufactured in the Far East will remain cheaper, particularly if they have parts that can be totally sourced or made locally, which is where China scores highly. Many of the industries producing such goods however, tend to be less ethical or environmentally friendly than their EU counterparts, yet vast quantities of such goods are imported and sold in Europe. There is an element of hypocrisy in allowing imports from these sources, while at the same time imposing strict controls on our own manufacturing. Hopefully this will change, for the good of the environment and our industries.
In the meantime, it is encouraging to see manufacturing growth in Great Britain and the future is looking bright for the economy while this remains the trend.