Chris Eastwood Automotive Ltd

Call Made To Embrace Digitalisation Of The Automotive Industry

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders’ (SMMT’s) Digitalisation of the UK Automotive Industry paper highlights that there is a £74 billion opportunity for the UK over the next 20 years if this takes place. Putting digital manufacturing, autonomous vehicles and e-mobility at the heart of the industrial strategy could bring big benefits for consumers, productivity and the economy as a whole.

Making the move to digital manufacturing would be the biggest step change for the sector since automation in production lines was brought in back in the 60s. Technologies like artificial intelligence, robotics and 3D printing could help manufacturers and others in the supply chain save time, be more productive, reduce costs and waste, and enable companies to respond better to consumer demand.

However, there are challenges that will need to be overcome, such as necessary improvements to the digital infrastructure in the UK, as well as addressing the skills gap and accelerating investment in digitalisation.

SMMT chief executive Mike Hawes said: “We may only be at the beginning of a new industrial era but with innovation and continuous improvement part of the automotive sector’s DNA, we are well placed to embrace the opportunity. Significant capital investment will be necessary and we must put digitalisation at the heart of the UK’s industrial strategy to ensure we are equipped with the right skills, infrastructure and standards. The competition from other countries is intense, so we should follow the model that is proving so successful in the development of low emission and connected and autonomous vehicles in the UK, with a collaborative approach between government and industry.”

Digitalisation is already happening in the automotive industry in the UK, which is unsurprising given that the speedy development of the country’s digital economy means that consumer expectations have changed. Older business models are now being adapted and changed – and even scrapped as a result. The benefits of digital manufacturing include reduction in machine downtime, a hike in productivity, improvements in forecasting accuracy, reductions in the amount of time it takes to come to market, reductions in plant maintenance costs and an increase in the productivity of technical aspects like production planning.

For those in automotive employment in the UK, it may well be necessary for you to undertake extra training if you’re to be competitive in the jobs market. A recent SMMT study found that there are many new training requirements because of the adoption of new technologies in the industry… in fact, it was found that there are 71 different types of learning necessary for over 20,000 people working in the sector, 15 per cent of whom immediately require new training (with the most critical requirements being lean manufacturing, advanced problem solving and tool making).

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