Investment spurs ‘renaissance’ in car part manufacturing

British companies which make car parts have benefited from £41m in extra private investment over the past four years, thanks to a £13m government stimulus scheme, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).

The Long Term Automotive Supply Chain Competitiveness programme, which began in 2014 and ended this year, helped 27 British suppliers to compete globally, Production Engineering Solutions reports.

The programme was managed by the SMMT for the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

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Participating firms improved manufacturing processes as well as their research and development skills, says the SMMT, leading to growth in turnover and the opening-up of new markets. Some became approved suppliers for car companies.

As a result, 3,200 jobs were created or safeguarded.

Production Engineering Solutions says the local content of British-made cars has risen by eight percentage points since 2011 as the sector enjoys a “renaissance”. The percentage of UK-manufactured parts in the average British-made car is now 44%.

Greg Clark, the Business Secretary, said: “The UK’s automotive industry is one of our biggest success stories [and] continues to attract significant investment from leading manufacturers.”

The recent boost “helped power us towards our goal of increasing UK content in domestically produced vehicles to 50% by 2022”, he added.

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