Over 1,800 workers in manufacturing to be upskilled through Made Smarter

Arden Dies, a die and tooling manufacturer based in Stockport, has worked with Made Smarter to create a digital roadmap, taken onboard two interns to upskill the business, and enrolled Operations Manager Sarah Poynter on the leadership programme. The collective result is that 20 of its workforce have been upskilled.

Sarah said: “We have always invested in the best technology and machinery, but there are historic challenges that need our focus if we are to capitalise on the next stage of our growth.”

“We are a traditional manufacturer, so change can be scary. We are on the journey and starting to see the benefits of educating the whole team, top to bottom. We have also focussed on improving leadership and project management skills to help drive our digital transformation and better communicate changes that are essential for organisation.

"We have developed in-house training on waste and lean manufacturing to change the culture and mindset across the shopfloor, encouraging the workforce to question if there is a better way to do things. And we have two Made Smarter interns with expertise in additive manufacturing to mentor and share their skills across the business to imbed that knowledge.”

Fabricon Design, a business which used advanced manufacturing methods to produce innovative plastics, aluminium and steel component designs, based in Ashton-under-Lyne, has also used Made Smarter’s digital internship programme to drive the upskilling process.

Luke Hickson, a master’s postgraduate studying Industrial Digitalisation at Manchester Metropolitan University, has supported the implementation of technology projects and training the workforce.

Rebecca Lee-Panton, Compliance Manager, said: “The success of adopting new technology into Fabricon Design was developing new skills to make the most of the investment. Luke has supported that process, first as an intern and then as a full-time member of the team. He has been an amazing asset, training operators in our new data collection system and the use of tablets and handheld scanners, which is now trickling down to other operatives.”

Brainboxes, an electronics manufacturer based in Liverpool, was supported by Made Smarter in the adoption of robotics.

Luke Walsh, Managing Director, said: “There was scepticism among our production staff about what a robot would do to their livelihoods, but the Made Smarter team were extremely good at helping us understand what the benefit was and communicate that to our workforce.

“Now my production staff aren’t saying to me ‘the robot has taken my job’ but suggesting where the technology could also be adopted. Taking the right approach has converted digitalisation sceptics into champions in our business.”

Nutree Life, a food manufacturer based in Burscough, Lancashire, was supported by Made Smarter to invest in state-of-the-art automation and control technologies which enabled high volume, high speed and accurate production and laid the foundations for a network which captures data for further analysis.

The digitalisation has resulted in 25 workers being upskilled into technical operators, team leaders, and new management roles.

Patrick Mroczak, Co-Founder and CEO, said: "Digitalisation is a journey. Once you take that first step your mind is opened and you want to delve deeper.

“Our entire workforce has gone to another level of working since the arrival of these new technologies. Now, because they run these processes, they are coming up with ideas to take it further.

“With the increased productivity and greater efficiency, I have been able to create dozens of new jobs, adding brain power to a broader team, and upskill a significant number of them. This process has created a much more profitable business and much happier staff.”

DM Engineering, based in Maryport, launched in 2019 as a start-up engineering firm offering precision machining, manufacturing, and site-fitting services to a wide range of customers in west Cumbria.

With an ambition of becoming a fully connected digital manufacturing facility, Made Smarter supported the business to invest in Solidworks (3D Modelling) software replacing time-consuming 2D methods.

Darren Martin, owner, said his team has embraced the opportunity to upskill to keep up with the digital manufacturing landscape.

"I have a small team of handpicked engineers with old school engineering values but a forward thinking approach to modern manufacturing methods,” he said.

"New technologies can be daunting for some engineers. But my team is onboard. They’ve seen the benefit of having the most up-to-date software, saving time and effort by reusing designs from previous, similar jobs, and having opportunities to do more challenging and highly technical work."

Terry Mattinson, 55, admits he was uncertain about the new approach.

"Engineering has changed a lot over my career with new technologies coming in," he said. "Admittedly, I was hesitant at first as I didn’t fully appreciate how it would work or how it would make things better. But with patient tutoring and plenty of practice it has become much easier and I am now comfortable using the CAD/CAM software and operating the CNC machines, and have picked up some new skills.

"Change can be unnerving, but once you see the outcomes it makes complete sense to pursue new ways of doing things."