News Article
The future of national manufacturing business support will be shaped on Tyneside in November.
The inaugural Manufacturing Advisory Service (MAS) Congress will be held in the North East and will specifically focus on helping companies take advantage of the benefits offered by the low carbon agenda, improving workforce skills and helping firms develop advanced manufacturing techniques.
Hosting the event is a major coup for Newcastle. The Congress will attract representatives from all of the UK MAS Centres, regional development agencies, devolved administrations and delivery partners.
The MAS National Congress will be held on Thursday 26th November at the Centre for Life, Times Square, Newcastle.
One North East Director of Business and Industry, Ian Williams, said: “The MAS Congress is an important event for the region. It provides us with the opportunity to showcase how well our regional MAS NE service works and how our engineers use the unique skills pioneered by One North East’s own North East Productivity Alliance to help regional businesses save millions.”
Since its creation a year ago by Government and One North East, the new MAS NE service - which is a combination of the Manufacturing Advisory Service and One North East’s pioneering North East Productivity Alliance - has registered impressive results, working with firms across the region providing practical advice and guidance to boost productivity and generate efficiency savings.
MAS NE’s first annual results reveal how the organisation supported 543 firms across the North East, helped secure £21.1m in productivity savings to businesses, including working capital reductions and energy procurement savings and produced energy usage reduction savings totalling £6.8m - the CO2 equivalent saving of 39,000 tonnes per year
As well as providing an insight into new low carbon opportunities, Congress partners will look at ways of increasing collaboration between the regions, identifying emerging opportunities and highlighting how MAS can support UK manufacturers across the advanced manufacturing agendas.
Roger Parr, MAS National Network Resource Manager, said: “MAS prides itself on delivering manufacturing best practice and this event is aimed at looking at maximising MAS’ impact on clients and ensuring we provide the best support we can across a range of new agendas. The additional funding from BIS for low carbon and advanced manufacturing offers us a fantastic opportunity to support manufacturers who will help the UK come out of the recession. The congress will look at how we can support manufacturers with new advanced manufacturing and low carbon technologies and help them access new markets and opportunities.
“This is an event that will educate our teams, support the development of new initiatives and reinforce our ability to provide manufacturers with the support that they need to remain productive and competitive in these troubling times for all businesses.”
MAS has received additional funding in respects of the low carbon and advanced manufacturing agendas which has led it to a number of priorities:
• To support UK manufacturers to become part of the supply chain in civil nuclear, low carbon vehicles and renewable energy
• To help UK manufacturers to improve resource efficiency in energy, waste, water, materials
• To enable UK manufacturers to enter emerging markets in low carbon and take advantage of emerging technologies in sustainable maufacturing
• To support New Product Development/New Product Introduction with respects to low carbon products.
Three workshops focusing on improving Resource Efficiency, Supply Chain activities and Skills have been arranged for the Congress to ensure regional MAS teams are coordinated to ensure UK manufacturers receive the best possible service.
MAS North East project is to be part financed by the European Union’s European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) Competitiveness Programme 2007-13. ERDF is bringing over £250m into North East England to support innovation, enterprise and business support across the region. It will help create and safeguard 28,000 new jobs, start 3,000 new businesses and increase the region’s productivity by £1.1bn per annum.
MAS North East is part of Solutions for Business, the Government’s package of publicly funded support products offering help to companies to start, grow and succeed. Solutions for Business makes it easier for companies to get the advice and assistance that they need.
For further information on the full package of support, visit www.businesslink.gov.uk/northeast or Tel: 0845 600 9006.
Ends.
For more information, contact Bryn Littleton (press office) on 0191 2296713 or 07717 468918 or by emailing bryn.littleton@onenortheast.co.uk
« Back to list