It's that time of the year again, the start of a new session, but before introducing you to our new Chairman for 2016-17, I'd like to take a brief moment to look back at our flagship event that took place in March.  I've already blogged about it so the details have been shared, but as it was such a fantastic event, and happened largely as a result of our past Chairman, Ronaldo,  and our incoming Chairman Ian, (more of whom below), it is worth looking back.  


The event, Advanced Manufacturing And Functional Materials, was attended by over 60 people.  We heard from a variety of fascinating speakers, including, Paul Wiper, Keith Robson, Takahiro Hiramatsu, Jing Yang and Chaoying Wan.  Not forgetting, of course, Chairman for the day, the very active local MP, Chris White.  As many will know, Chris is Co-chair of the APMG and a leading voice in Parliament in support of UK manufacturing sector.   Most of the presentations during the day were filmed and you can still view them on our IET.tv platform.   Links to available presentations are in my original blog.

 

We are now starting the planning stages for our next series of events, so do keep checking  back for details.  Do get in touch with me if you have any suggestions for activies you would like to see too.


Now, to hand over to Ian Williamson,  for his welcome message.

I am honored to serve you as Chairman of the Manufacturing Network. I would like to thank Dr Ronaldo Ronaldo for all of his commitment, dedication and hard work as Chairman over the last three years.  Dr Ronaldo Ronaldo previously served on the East Midland Young Persons Committee and was appointed as the Chairman. 


The importance of supporting our manufacturing heritage was for a time forgotten with offshore manufacturing becoming more prosperous in lower cost economies, less people entering a career in manufacturing and less reliance from the sector in favor of our financial services sectors.


Manufacturing is strategically important globally and to the United Kingdom. Following the financial crisis in recent years the significance of our manufacturing industries has once again been recognised and there is significant work being completed to try and re-balance the United Kingdom economy with reliance from our manufacturing sectors to Gross Domestic Product.  It is reassuring to see that our manufacturing sectors are being supported by Government and professional institutes and continue to make positive headlines. 


Engineering is a global community and we must work together. The United Kingdom has a world renowned reputation for pioneering design and development. We have started to see growth in our sectors and manufacturing being re-shored. As Engineers we face many significant challenges considering the scarcity and availability of some materials, renewable materials, recycling of materials, improved transportation and power generation to name a few. we have seen how manufacturing has realised many of human aspirations; producing products that have transformed our lives, more affordable products through better design and use of materials and through developing more efficient manufacturing methods. 


It is reassuring to see that engineering is once again being seen as a career path for young people with extensive support to train and educate the next generation.  Education is important for all engineers, who need to continue to update their knowledge and learn best practices from our global community and it is important that we learn from one another. 


The Manufacturing Technical Professional Network (TPN) in collaboration with other TPNs and Local Networks, Design Production Sector, and other entities, comes into play by facilitating knowledge exchange through a variety of activities. IET staff & volunteers are continuously raising the profile of engineers. But we know we can achieve more, so if you would like to drive this sector forward, by using your expertise and influence, please contact us.