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Follow on Google News | Government Must Capitalise on Manufacturing Growth.The UK's manufacturing sector maintained its recent record pace of growth in February, according to the latest Markit/Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply (CIPS) survey.
By: proskills The Markit/CIPS headline manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) stood at 61.5 in February, the highest since the survey began in January 1992 and above the consensus forecast of 61. This rapid pace of growth is good news to leaders of Britain’s manufacturing sector, who feel that their investment in the skills of the country’s workforce is starting to pay dividends Terry Watts, CEO of Proskills comments, “We have pushed and preached the benefits of raising skills within manufacturing for a long time, and now the impact is starting to be good news for the UK economy, hopefully the government will take notice of this, as today’s findings is real evidence that a workforce that continually evolves and grows in ability can push companies to success. “Manufacturing is in a positive state of growth, but the focus historically has been primarily on engineering manufacturing, and continued investment from the government is needed across all of Britain’s manufacturing industries to turn this positive growth into consistent growth. It is only through investment in skills with employers that the government can catalyse the change in behaviour to ensure that t positive and permanent growth will become a habit.” Despite evidence of rapid growth there are worries that the rising cost of raw materials, especially energy, will hinder recovery. Figures from the Office for National Statistics showed in January that fuel paid by UK manufacturers rose at an annual rate of 13.4%, having a detrimental effect on manufacturers throughout Britain as every 1p increase in energy costs can equates £100,000s in cost of production. The 2010 Employer Survey conducted by Proskills suggests that 15% of employers within the process and manufacturing sector felt they had lost customers due to energy price rises in the last year, and that these increased costs had forced 1 in 10 companies in the sector to make redundancies. Nearly two-thirds (62%) of Proskills’ companies believe that continuing increases in energy prices will cause significant or catastrophic problems for their businesses in the next five years. Terry Watts continues, “It is clear that the rises in energy and fuel costs are having a huge effect on the future success of the sector. One way which Proskills has been successful in trying to battle this is by securing funding for training in sustainability and carbon reduction related qualifications. “This funding means that every manufacturer in the Process and Manufacturing Industry Proskills represents in England is eligible for up to 50% of the cost of a range of qualifications that will support their business growth. This is a fantastic opportunity to train staff and balance the costs of rising energy prices by making your company and staff as energy efficient as possible.” To find out more about the work that Proskills does, visit www.proskills.co.uk. # # # Proskills UK is an employer-led organisation that represents the interests of the industries that make up the process and manufacturing sector to government. End
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