SMMT Industry Forum CEO, Dr. Chris Owe, commented: “Between our two great industries we have decades of experience on how to develop supply chains, but for far too long our approach has been fragmented, sector-specific and confusing for small and medium manufacturers. Now we have come together to put in place a new supply chain competitiveness and productivity programme to tackle the UK’s productivity challenge, raise workforce capability, boost economic growth and export.
“We have political and economic challenges ahead but there are also marvellous opportunities for the hundreds of small and medium manufacturers who play a vital role in our supply chains across automotive, aerospace, rail and nuclear sectors.”
Dr. Owen urged over 250 event attendees to think carefully about their competitive performance and how they might develop their capabilities by engaging with the new SC21 C&G programme which is underpinned by the new cross-sector National Manufacturing Competitiveness Levels (NMCL) programme.
SC21 C&G builds on the experience gained in previous national supply chain improvement programmes and has already been trialled with encouraging results. Notably, it takes a more holistic view of manufacturer performance improvement, with a focus on competitiveness in addition to productivity: achieving customer impact and winning new business.
