The UK’s manuacturing base is shifting towards London and the south, away from its declining heartland in the north and Midlands. It is a trend likely to accelerate
Research has shown that UK engineering’s centre of gravity is shifting south and that the sector is moving up the value chain, concentrating increasingly on research and development and design work.
The collapse of the Rover car firm last year accelerated the movement of personnel away from the Midlands, the UK’s historic engineering centre, to take up positions in the south.
Just over 40% of new engineering jobs are based in London or the south east, while only 14% of engineering jobs are now based in the Midlands.
Wynnwith, the UK technical staffing company, notes that 75% of the largest aerospace companies in the UK – such as Airbus, BAE Systems and Rolls-Royce – have facilities in the south-west of England, employing a workforce of 43,000 skilled engineers.
“Job creation in the south-west is testament to the growth of the UK’s aerospace and defence sector, which has developed in a major centre of excellence around Bristol, to become the second-biggest employer in the region overall,” says director Steve Howard of Wynnwith.
“There is still strong demand for blue-collar engineering skills in areas like aerospace and rail where investment levels are high,” he says.
“The government needs to ensure that extra funding for apprenticeships is channelled to the areas where demand is greatest.” According to Wynnwith, the shift to the south has come because the demand for research and design engineers has outstripped the demand for manufacturing engineers.
The company says its research shows that the UK engineering sector is moving up the value chain by shifting its focus to design and consultancy work as low-cost overseas markets – such as China and South-East Asian countries – expand their manufacturing bases.
It also says infrastructure projects in London and the southeast – such as Heathrow Terminal Five, the Channel Tunnel rail link, and facilities to be built for the 2012 Olympic Games – are all fuelling demand for engineers in the capital and surrounding areas.
Howard adds: “The proportion of total UK engineering jobs based in and around London is likely to grow over the next few years as preparations for the Olympics intensify. Engineering requirements for the games extend far beyond the Olympics itself to include £17 billion [$29.5 billion] of investment in transport infrastructure between now and 2012.”
Wynnwith’s research was based on responses from 2,700 engineers from a variety of sectors.
■ flight.workingweek@rbi.co.uk
Source: Flight International
