Britain’s manufacturers are powering forward in their digital journey towards Net Zero as the sector moves to reduce energy usage and costs, cut greenhouse gas emissions and boost productivity, according to new research published by Make UK, the manufacturers’ organisation, and cloud business management solutions firm Sage. The research – ‘Decarbonisation through Digitalisation’ – shows manufacturing businesses are investing in digital technologies more than ever before and reaping multiple benefits – from productivity increases to product improvements, reduction in waste and labour efficiencies. Use of a pool of digital tools including data analytics, supply chain management to boost resilience and full automation of business processes including finance, human resources, manufacturing and procurement have been working together to boost productivity. Nearly half of manufacturers have an active plan to invest in digital technologies to decarbonise their business and almost a quarter have already invested in digital solutions. A further 23% plan to do so in the coming 12 months. Some 62% of companies which have already adopted digital technologies into their production processes reported energy cost savings – over half said those savings were between £10,000 and £100,000 the last 12 months. A further 46% said energy savings came in under £10,000 but were still significant to their businesses. But savings did not end there with companies citing real cost savings on labour, material wastage and water usage. Almost half (44%) of companies surveyed said that digitalisation has been their firm’s top driver of productivity improvements, with production processes tightened up. The need to reduce carbon is now embedded in most companies’ business plans with a quarter of Britain’s manufacturers believing new digital technologies have already had an impact on decarbonisation and their ability to achieve challenging Net Zero targets. Just one in ten businesses do not believe that digitalisation will have any impact on their Net Zero ambitions. Of those surveyed, 30% of businesses reported they had already invested in supply chain management digital tools which can reduce emissions and build resilience from delivery disruptions caused by new Brexit trading rules and long-term Covid disruption in Asia. However, significant barriers to digitalisation remain, with six in ten manufacturers still wary of the upfront cost without accurate timings for return on the investment. Companies (45%) said more evidence on investment return would help drive positive decisions towards the adoption of digital tech as part of their journey towards Net Zero. Half of manufacturers said that tax incentives to invest in digital decarbonisation technologies and upskill their current workforce would provide a major boost to uptake. Again, SMEs found taking those first digital steps much harder than larger companies with  64% of smaller firms saying they experience skills shortages while trying to invest and adopt digital tech. Stephen Phipson, CEO of Make UK, the manufacturers organisation, said: “Britain’s manufacturers have long been at the forefront of digital innovation globally and they have taken significant steps to cut carbon emissions and move towards Net Zero. “But in order to supercharge that journey, business needs Government to play its part in driving the process forward. “To that end, Government needs to help them move forward faster by committing to a national rollout of the industrial digitalisation programme Made Smarter across the UK and expand its remit to include industrial decarbonisation. “Made Smarter has already delivered amazing successes in helping SMEs boost their productivity through digitalisation, and they are ideally placed to pick up the mantle to help decarbonise through digitalisation. “We need to see an expansion in the R&D tax relief to include capital equipment relating to industrial decarbonisation and the introduction of a Help to Grow Green tax credit to incentivise businesses to take those first active steps to produce goods more sustainably at a time companies are cash-strapped through the burden of higher labour and energy costs.”

Derby College Group (DCG) are set to receive a £3.5 million capital award from the Government’s Post 16 capacity fund. This will enable DCG to provide additional capacity for 16-19 learners and create a space that meets local and national skills requirements and is reflective of learner demand.

The new state-of-the-art facilities will ensure that DCG is equipped to provide training for the changing automotive technologies including the evolving requirements for electric vehicles.

The new facility will be located at the back of the current Stephenson Building on the Roundhouse site in Derby. And importantly, it will be built in the most efficient and sustainable way in order to achieve net-zero carbon emissions. To accomplish this, the construction will be future-proofed and will incorporate air-source heat pumps, thermal-resistant materials and solar panels.

Iain Baldwin, Director of Estate commented on the new building: “It is excellent news to be awarded this grant as this will enable us to create a building that will be totally aligned to the needs of the automotive industry. 

“The building will be in the region of 1150 metres and will incorporate facilities such as high-level lifts, and a double workshop and will be designed to integrate with the existing Stephenson Building. And the construction will be environmentally friendly incorporating the latest building techniques and materials.” Steven Elliott, Head of Technology Apprenticeships said of the new build: “This facility will help strengthen the automotive skills of today’s learners and support the education of the next generation.

“We want to inspire anyone who is interested in working in the automotive industry as it is an ever-changing and exciting area to work in. It really has evolved and it’s now an extremely technical industry which requires an abundance of new skills. “So by creating this propose-built training centre, DCG will be perfectly placed to meet the needs of the learners and of the employers.” The building is currently in the planning stage, looking at enhancing the design, finalising costings and preparing all the specifications ready to go out for tender for an anticipated date of the end of July. September 2024 is the anticipated completion date and occupancy of the building is expected in the new academic year.

Toby Perkins MP, Shadow Minister for Skills and Further Education, has toured the Nuclear Skills Academy in Derby, the UK’s first dedicated facility for training the next generation of nuclear engineers. The Academy, which welcomed its first apprentices in September 2022, was established by Rolls-Royce, the University of Derby and industry partners including Derby City Council, Nuclear Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (NAMRC), and the National College for Nuclear. The Academy will create a dedicated pipeline of talent to support the United Kingdom’s submarine fleet, and the new AUKUS submarine for the Australian Royal Navy. The power and propulsion for the current fleet is manufactured by Rolls-Royce from its Raynesway facility in Derby. Toby Perkins, Member of Parliament for Chesterfield, toured the Nuclear Skills Academy and met with apprentices who are currently enrolled at the Academy. During his visit, he also participated in a roundtable discussion with representatives from the University, Rolls-Royce and University Alliance – of which the University is a member – on plans for building the UK’s future workforce. Professor Kathryn Mitchell CBE DL, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Derby, said: “The University has played a key leading role in the development of the Nuclear Skills Academy, and we are delighted with its success to date. “Through our apprenticeship delivery, we are producing a pipeline of outstanding graduates and engineering technicians, who are ready to meet regional and national skills needs now and in the future. By working in close partnership with industry and responding to their needs, we have together created a highly effective model that can help address the UK’s nuclear skills challenge.” Toby Perkins MP, Shadow Minister for Skills and Further Education, said: “It was wonderful to visit the Nuclear Skills Academy today and take a tour of the facility. It was great to meet some of the apprentices at the site and to discuss with staff their future plans for apprenticeships and skills.” Lee Warren, Engineering & Technology Director at Rolls-Royce Submarines Ltd, said: “As a former apprentice myself, I know how valuable it is to learn and develop through both education and on-the-job training. As we come to the end of our first academic year at the Nuclear Skills Academy, I have been delighted by the passion, commitment and proficiency of our apprentices. Their enthusiasm is contagious and I look forward to what the next academic year will bring.” Vanessa Wilson, Chief Executive of University Alliance, said: “The Nuclear Skills Academy is one of the best examples of how University Alliance members like the University of Derby are working with industry to deliver high-level skills for the future. “The world is changing faster than ever. We will need high-level skills, research and innovation to build a thriving green economy and healthy society for the future. It is essential that government takes a long-term strategic view of the knowledge and skills we need as a country, and works closely with universities, industry and employers to meet those needs and enable the path to innovation and opportunity.” Earlier this year, the University of Derby and Rolls-Royce won the ‘Employer & Training Provider Partnership Award’ at the UK Nuclear Skills Awards 2023, in recognition of the strong partnership working between the two organisations on the Nuclear Skills Academy.