Midlands manufacturers set to benefit from latest RGF

MIDLANDS manufacturers are in for a boost from the £1bn extension of the Government’s Regional Growth Fund, sector analysts have said.

Speaking after the announcement of the new cash at the National Manufacturing Summit, Peter Gallimore, manufacturing partner at Deloitte Birmingham, said: “This is great news for Midlands manufacturers; the fund will provide a much needed boost to a number of innovative manufacturers who have been challenged by access to finance.

“Job creation and preservation is vital to local industry, particularly in the manufacturing sector, which is still being seen as one of the fuel engines of the wider economy.”

He said he was confident that a large number of manufacturing companies would be making applications to the fund.

“It’s an industry that is keen to progress with delivering innovative products and widening the skills of their workforce. The Government have looked to the sector to boost job creation and productivity, and putting these vital funds in place will in the long term produce a net benefit to the UK economy as a whole,” he said.

Midland manufacturing has been one of the main beneficiaries of the first two rounds of RGF funding.

£125m has been pledged to the advanced manufacturing supply chain through a project led by the LEPs in four areas: Greater Birmingham and Solihull, the Black Country, Coventry & Warwickshire and Liverpool.

Separate awards have also been pledged to Jaguar Land Rover to help with advanced engine research and Alstom which is receiving £4m to upgrade facilities at Alstom Grid in Stafford.

Mr Gallimore added: “Across the UK, the manufacturing industry has been outgrowing the economy for over a year now and managed to keep growing during the toughest months of the economic crisis. Now, more than ever, manufacturing is in a position to strengthen its ability, skills, export potential and increase growth across the sector.”

His colleague Alistair Davies, director of Deloitte’s grant and incentive practice, said the extra funding would benefit businesses looking to make a fresh investment.

“The Regional Growth Fund is an incredibly flexible scheme, potentially supporting research and development, training and job creation,” he said.

The advisor is planning a series of initiatives and workshops to ensure firms are better informed about how to tap into the funding.