Made in the Midlands: networking at its best 

While the UK manufacturing sector remains in a state of flux with the pattern of steady growth constantly beset by Brexit headwinds and skills challenges, one of the fundamentals of a successful business strategy – collaboration – remains as important today as ever.

Industry support group Made in the Midlands, has been championing the cause of collaboration for the past decade. The membership-led organisation represents the interests of more than 400 manufacturers throughout the Midlands with its members representative of many of the diverse sectors which characterise this complex industry.

The networking ethos is strong throughout the group, with members encouraged to make use of the diverse range of businesses in order to collaborate for mutual gain. It is a simple approach, but the tried and tested nature of this has proved consistently successful.

The most visual aspect of this strategy will once again be evident when the 2018 Made in the Midlands annual exhibition takes place at Coventry’s Ricoh Arena on June 21^st. Whilst the overriding theme of the exhibition will be the importance of collaboration, the membership will also be tapping into general manufacturing issues including Industry 4.0, overcoming the skills gap and international trade.

Also high on the agenda will be MIM’s new Inclusivity campaign which addresses concerns that the manufacturing industry is lagging behind many others with regards to the recruitment of women, people with disabilities and those from the diverse ethnic backgrounds which characterise a typical manufacturing community.

MIM believes an inclusive and diverse workforce allows an organisation to benefit from a different set of values and perspectives, allowing it to develop more creative and harmonious solutions to everyday challenges.

More on the floor

Last year’s exhibition – also held at the Ricoh – attracted a record number of firms with thousands of delegates visiting the venue to talk to exhibitors. This year’s event promises to be the biggest yet, with hundreds of firms already booked to attend and delegate interest high. It has attracted hundreds of exhibitors, all MIM members, and thousands of visitors are expected to head to the exhibition hall for the show.

Such has been interest in the exhibition, that MIM has taken the unprecedented step of trebling floor space for this year’s event. This year’s show, the ninth annual celebration of Midlands manufacturing, will feature a stellar array of industry talent with more than half of the value-add SME, Tier One and OEM manufacturing companies within a 100-mile radius of the Ricoh having a presence in the arena.

Exhibitors already lined up for the exhibition include: Mahle, Ricoh, Gestamp, Liberty Group, Arlington Group, Kloeckner, Dennis Eagle and hundreds of others.

Jason Pitt, CEO of MIM, said: “The Made in the Midlands exhibition is specifically designed for people in the manufacturing sector who value the importance of reviewing their supply chain, meeting new contacts and getting a feel for how well the Midlands manufacturing community is innovating, investing and promoting itself.

“Made in the Midlands is a unique community of like-minded companies with a shared interest in promoting Midlands industry. We organise frequent events for the manufacturing sector and this exhibition is the jewel in our crown. It showcases excellence in the manufacturing sector and over the nine years it has been held, has grown to be one of the biggest annual industrial shows in the Midlands.”

He adds: “We’re approaching our tenth anniversary and during the past decade we have striven to provide our members with a suitable platform at which to showcase their capabilities. We are delighted with the way our members have embraced the exhibition and each year we strive for improvement. The fact these events are experiencing a 30% annual growth is a graphic illustration of the value placed on the exhibition by our members.”

Adding value

In an effort to enhance the delegate experience at this year’s event, MIM has agreed a new partnership with Freeman EMEA – one of the world’s largest brand experience companies. Established 90 years ago, US-based Freeman has been delivering world class exhibitions for decades and it will be bringing this experience to the Ricoh Arena.

In addition to this investment, which will transform the visitor experience, the exhibition platform being used by MIM has allowed firms to customise their stand and ensure all logistics are smooth and painless, freeing up exhibitors to focus on developing more of those important business connections and supplier opportunities.

“This year, more than ever, it’s a major statement of intent that the exhibition operation is being managed by world-class suppliers,” Mr Pitt adds. It is also telling that in an increasingly competitive marketplace MIM members have recognised that the exhibition offers them a great opportunity to increase their sales and grow their customer base.

Charles Addison, director of Made in the Midlands, said: “Manufacturers feel that the exhibition model globally is increasingly under scrutiny for value and time and it was felt this was predominantly down to the time and investment required to be part of large events, which tend to be ad-hoc.

“We’ve found that our members attach considerable value to this exhibition and view it as part of a wider events schedule of 30 other relevant manufacturing networking and best practice opportunities in 2018.

“The opportunity to take time out from the workplace and meet the great and the good in your sector, on your doorstep, all supporting the ethos of manufacturing excellence is irresistible. Fundamentally, it supports the basic principle of collaboration, which is one of the foundation stones of our members and is one of the main reasons why the network has been so successful down the years.

“We’ve conducted research showing it takes numerous points of contact to create new relationships – face to face is just one of them. This exhibition works by blending together a variety of these contact methods, including online profile, best practice events, networking and social media. It is one of the reasons why hundreds of our members keep coming back year after year and by doing so, support not just this event but themselves.”

The growth in the exhibition also mirrors the growth in the MIM membership. Made in the Midlands now represents more than 440 manufacturers, predominantly from the SME sector.

The companies populating this sector, specifically those with turnovers of between £2 - £100 million, are the backbone of British industry and their contribution to the wider UK economy is frequently overlooked.

The Made in the Midlands exhibition takes place in the Ericsson Hall at the Ricoh Arena, Coventry on June 21st.

Made in the Midlands www.madeinthemidlands.com