Manufacturing group urges more members to export
MANUFACTURING network Made in the Midlands has mounted a campaign urging its members to expand their export strategies and to start thinking global.
The Midland-based network said it was encouraged by the number of companies seeking out export opportunities to BRIC countries and other regions outside the European Union.
However, it said there was always scope for more overseas trade.
John Faulkner, president, Made in the Midlands, said depending on the shipping density of a firm’s components, the rewards were often attractive. This was especially the case with emerging economies such as Brazil.
He said many of the network’s members were already enjoying export success to countries outside the EU. Examples include Redditch-based precision engineering manufacturer Samuel Taylor (STL), which achieves 85% of its turnover through export.
MIM said although import duties and tariff codes could pose a challenge, in particular when it came to the United States, support was available to help firms overcome these obstacles.
Another local firm going global is Smethwick-based protective case manufacturer Zero Cases. Counting countries such as China, India, South Korea and Saudi Arabia amongst their export destinations, the company’s UK plant manager Mike Dimmack said: “One of the key benefits exporting to regions outside the Eurozone is that these countries do not see any restrictions in budget and pressure on reduction of government spending.”
The company currently generates 35% of its total sales through export – a rate which is expected to rise to 50% by the end of the year.
In the past five years the UK has seen its exports to BRIC countries more than double, increasing from £12.7bn in 2007 to £27.1bn in 2012, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
However, a report by the Marketing Birmingham Regional Observatory and the Greater Birmingham and Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership (GBSLEP) revealed last year that only around 25% of businesses in the West Midlands export to an overseas market, with nearly half of them primarily focusing on the local region.
MIM currently represents 260 local manufacturing firms. Its goal is to bring companies together and expand the manufacturing base in the West Midlands.
