NOVEMBER 2019
Companies with
representatives in China
sensed the Covid-19 storm
brewing when cities in
Hubei province followed
Wuhan by implementing
lockdown in January 2020.
Alloy Wire International (AWI)
has over 40 agents across the
world and a key growth market is
the Far East.
“As the virus spread and media
focus intensified, we knew it was
heading for the UK and started
to take appropriate measures
in the middle of February,” said
Angus Hogarth, Sales Director
at the Brierley Hill-based based
company.
Criticised since for its late
response, the UK government
imposed an initial three-week
lockdown on March 23 that was
extended for a minimum of three
weeks on April 16. Phase one saw
‘furlough’ enter the lexicon as
companies scrambled to remain
viable and video conferencing
services including Zoom were
keeping people in touch.
It also became clear that
frontline NHS staff were in urgent
need of PPE (personal protective
equipment) to protect against
patients’ involuntary reactions
to Covid-19, as well as ventilators
and breathing apparatus to assist
patients afflicted with the severe
respiratory condition.
With manufacturers allowed
to continue operations, many
of the UK’s engineering giants
united under Ventilator Challenge
UK and similar efforts to help
meet the demand for breathing
apparatus. Included among them
were the SMEs that have rallied to
produce vital equipment, either
as a concerted effort or as part of
day-to-day operations.
“Initial market research
quickly revealed an alarming
Unsung
heroes
SME manufacturers across the UK are playing a
vital role in keeping the manufacturing economy
ticking over whilst producing key components for
critical medical equipment
deficit in PPE,” said Kevin Porter,
Managing Director of Tecman
Speciality Materials. “We explored
the different options and made
the decision that we would be
most effective in supporting
efforts if we fast-tracked the
development of a face visor that
is designed from the start for high
volume manufacture. This was
accomplished within seven days.”
Porter said modifications
to Tecman facilities – including
an investment into automation
equipment – is expected to give his
Leamington Spa-based company
the capacity to manufacture over
1,000,000 finished visors a week,
with two or three people manning
the entire the process.
Adam Cunningham, Chairman
May 2020 / www.theengineer.co.uk 10
of MAN (Manufacturing Assembly
Network) and CEO of Muller
Holdings added that MAN Group
companies Grove Design and
James Lister & Sons developed
two basic ventilator systems from
scratch to understand some of the
parts and sub-assemblies involved,
whilst PP Control & Automation
is manufacturing over 25,000
harnesses for use in ventilator
production. Another MAN Group
company at the forefront of the
effort is Brandauer, which is
producing five million nose clips
for face masks every month.
One of the first PPE success
stories came from Inverness where
4C Engineering and Aseptium
pooled their resources to produce
an initial 1,000 face shields for a
WE ARE PASSIONATE ABOUT ONSHORING
MANUFACTURING AND HAVE HAD CONSTRUCTIVE
CONVERSATIONS WITH SUPPLY CHAIN PARTNERS
local ICU, an effort that would be
replicated across the UK.
“The very spirit of MAN is
built on collaboration and this has
been evident in the way we are
coming to terms with the unique
challenges presented by Covid-19,”
Cunningham said. “Some of our
members are extremely busy,
whilst others have had to furlough
staff and introduce temporary
shutdowns, so the weekly ‘Zoom’
calls can be a real godsend for
bouncing ideas and concerns off
each other.”
In early March Tecman were
warned that there could be a
significant impact on Automotive
OEM output, which would affect
60 per cent of the company’s
business.
“We are passionate about
onshoring manufacturing
and have had constructive
conversations with supply chain
partners who support the same
effort,” said Porter. “With the
investments that we are making in
automation and the support from
other UK manufacturing partners,
we have proved that we can
compete with product pricing that
is coming in from Asia. This aligns
perfectly with our vision.”
Porter estimates a 6-9-month
period before his company returns
to pre-Covid levels, but the picture
is less pessimistic elsewhere. AWI
retains 200 tonnes of stock and
has remained active with orders
received from around the world
covering numerous sectors.
“So instead of talking about
recovery, we are hoping that the
‘bounce back’ will build on an
already strong performance,”
said Hogarth. “We have taken the
decision to invest over £500,000
into increasing our raw material
stock, ensuring we are in the best
possible position to meet demand
from customers now and in the
future.”
News analysis
WRITTEN BY JASON FORD
/www.theengineer.co.uk