Your FMCEC is now in the planning phase for a new initiative which I am sure willinterest you. A partnership between the Department of Trade & Industry (DTI) and an automotive industry consortium called the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) Industry Forum has been actively assisting suppliers to the automotive industry to improve their competitiveness toward world class levels. Perhaps you have read of this effort in the newspaper or even attended the Forum Conference recently held in Birmingham.

The FMCEC would like to build on the success in the automotive industry and offer a similar opportunity to our supplier membership. Since our industry is smaller we are investigating with the DTI what might be appropriate for our situation. Currently the FMCEC Council is working with representatives of the supplier community to arrange a one-day conference in conjunction with our annual meeting next year. That conference will highlight the opportunity we have as a UK family to compete on a world class level with other manufacturers and their suppliers from Europe, the USA and the Far East.

With active support from the DTI we can then go forward and help individual companies improve their own operations. While the form of that support is still being discussed it could include subsidised training, outside consulting, or Master Engineers similar to those employed by the SMMT.

As a start the DTI has contracted for an Industry Sector Competitiveness Analysis. This will highlight where our industry in the UK is today. Remember we must talk about the entire supply chain. You might look at it as if the major OEMs are the distributors for your particular component when they include your seat, switch, wiring harness or fabrication in their product. It is a supply chain which must be cost effective on a world class basis to maximise results through this distribution system.