Maier spearheading digitalisation roadmap for Britain
Siemens UK and Ireland North West-based chief executive Juergen Maier is leading a group of prominent business leaders developing a roadmap for the digitisation of British industry.
Maier is chairing the Industrial Digitalisation Review, announced as part of the Government’s new Industrial Strategy a week ago, and meets for the first time in London this morning (Thursday, February 2) at the Digital Catapult Centre.
Its aim is to find ways new technologies can increase national productivity, improve the skills of employees across the country and boost advanced manufacturing.
The review is backed by the newly-formed Productivity Leadership Council, which received support from the Government in the November Autumn Statement.
Representatives from business include Sir Charlie Mayfield (chairman, John Lewis), Phil Smith (chairman, Cisco UK & Ireland), Carolyn Fairbairn (director-general, CBI) David Stokes (CEO UK & Ireland, IBM), Oliver Benzecry, (CEO of Accenture UK), Roger Connor (head of global manufacturing, GSK) and Nigel Stein, (CEO of GKN).
They will be joined by Nick Hurd MP, Minister of State at the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy who alongside the Secretary of State Greg Clarke will receive the outputs of the review.
The Industrial Digitalisation Review leadership team will engage with large and small businesses alongside academics to see how the design, development and deployment of digital technologies can drive increased national productivity.
The completion of the review will result in a blueprint for a ‘Sector Deal’ for manufacturing and industrial sectors, which could see government and business partners increase the take up of new technologies in the UK.
Maier said: “Our review is about defining how the UK can best adopt radical new technologies that will boost productivity and create new high tech jobs across manufacturing and industry.
“We want the end result to be a sector deal for manufacturing that makes a real difference to companies regardless of their size or market.
“It is not yet too late for the UK to take the global lead in this space, but we are in danger of falling behind if we do not take up the challenge now – so our aim is position UK manufacturing and industry at the heart of a new global industrial revolution much like it was more than 170 years ago when we first started doing business here.”
It is expected that the leadership team will look at the following challenges across UK industry
· driving productivity improvement
· boosting skills and the number of high value, high productivity jobs
· promoting competition and innovation;
· facilitating long term investment between suppliers and large companies
· identifying where the greatest value can be gained from new technology
· developing and growing the strengths of particular clusters;
· increasing exports; looking at trade and investment deals
· commercialising research
Climate Change and Industry Minister Nick Hurd MP said: “The launch of the Industrial Strategy Green Paper shows our commitment to improving growth and driving productivity across the whole country.
“Industry is best placed to identify what firms really need and we want them to come to us with proposals to transform and upgrade their sector.
“The independent Industrial Digitalisation Review will set out how the UK can maximize the use of digital technology to increase productivity, and create the high-skilled jobs we need for a successful, modern economy.”
The leadership team will also identify industrial sectors with the maximum opportunity to benefit from the adoption of industrial digitalisation technologies, looking at global best practice.
They will also identify the digital technologies with the highest likelihood of being able to create new industries and new jobs.
