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What does the future hold for UK manufacturing?

24 January, 2008

One of the leading experts on the state of manufacturing in the UK – Stephen Radley, chief economist at the manufacturers’ association, EEF – will give the keynote address at on the first day of the Drives & Controls Show in April. Radley will discuss the challenges facing UK manufacturers and how they are tackling them. He will also predict how the economic climate for manufacturing is likely to develop over the coming months, and assess the longer-term outlook for the sector.

Stephen Radley

Radley (above) is one of several keynote speakers who will lead a programme of more than 20 free seminars during the three-day event, taking place from 22-24 from April at the Birmingham National Exhibition Centre. The talks will be presented by experts from a wide range of government bodies, consultancies, trade associations, and universities. The three-day programme has been designed to avoid sales pitches by individual companies.

The speakers include:

• David Pratt from the Carbon Trust, who will give an insight into the Government’s energy policy and look at key legislation to encourage the efficient use of energy;

• Charles Gaisford, an expert on motor-driven systems from the UK Market Transformation Programme, who will report on the latest UK and EU programmes to promote energy-efficient motors, drives and systems;

• Steve Barker, representing Ganbica’s variable speed drives group, who will discuss the energy-saving potential of VSDs, including a look at best practice procedures, illustrated with real case studies;

• John Morse, form the consultancy IMS Research, who will examine the impact that Ethernet is having on industrial communications;

• Mike Dodds, from the Government’s Single Market Directives department, who will look at the new Machinery Directive and explain its implications; and

• Tim Marks, from the Association of Electrical and Mechanical Trades (AEMT), who will discuss the repair and maintenance of motors and other equipment for use in hazardous areas.

The wide-ranging seminar programme will cover topics of vital importance to readers of Drives & Controls and its sister magazines, Hydraulics and Pneumatics and Plants & Works Engineering. There will be speakers representing the British Compressed Air Society, the British Gear Association, the Health and Safety Executive, and the British Fluid Power Association.

Other topics to be covered include: novel technologies for early detection of gearbox damage; a new competence scheme for condition monitoring personnel; making use of Profibus data; using real-time Ethernet in safety applications; and reliability-centred maintenance.

º  Companies that have recently booked stands to exhibit at the Drives Show include Oriental Motor, Lamonde, Ideas in Automation, Fortress Interlocks, Slater Drives Systems, Olsen Engineering, Control 2k, ECP, Stocko, Deltasense, Zettlex, Machine Building Services, Duff Norton and Thinking Space/Kanya. Siemens will be bringing more than a dozen of its partners, including Parmley Graham and Park Electrical Services.

For more information on the show and on the seminar programme, visit the Show Web site at www.drives08.com.