SMALL manufacturers in Yorkshire and Humber are set to make the most of a strengthening UK economy by focusing on domestic markets for their future growth, it was revealed today.
Nearly three quarters (71%) of companies questioned in the latest Manufacturing Advisory Service (MAS) Barometer feel that increasing sales at home offered them the best chance to expand.
This was followed by firms looking to improve production processes, introduce new products and 34% focusing on boosting export performance.
There also appears to be significant confidence in longer-term growth as respondents predict a 48% rise in collective turnover and staffing levels to increase by 25% over the next four years.
The latter could equate to thousands of new jobs across the SME manufacturing base.
"There is significant confidence in the domestic marketplace at the moment, a further signal that the recovery has taken hold," explained David Caddle, area director of the MAS.
"Weve seen unrivalled investment in the UK automotive industry and that is cascading down the supply chain and creating new opportunities. Our reputation for low carbon advancement should also be another growth sector and Im sure our manufacturing SMEs will be in line to take advantage of major infrastructure projects, such as High Speed Rail."
He continued: "As part of the long-term focus, we also asked respondents about their biggest strengths, with the quality of senior leadership teams (71%) coming out on top, followed by innovative products (61%) and robust strategy (57%).
"It was surprising to discover that the biggest challenge is access to skills (77%), whilst marketing and creating effective sales channels were the next major concerns.. We will work with partners like GrowthAccelerator and SEMTA to help SME manufacturers overcome these challenges."
The MAS Barometer shared the views of 130 small manufacturers across Yorkshire and Humber, employing more than 4300 people and realising turnover in excess of £329m.
The results maintain the positivity seen in previous findings, with 65% of companies increasing sales in the last six months and a massive 84% expecting to grow between now and the end of the year record responses and a 3% and 14% improvement respectively on this time last year.
Sixty-four per cent are looking to recruit and create new jobs, which is a 23% rise on 2013.
Caddle continued: "Despite recent economic surveys reporting a slight dip in manufacturing performance, it appears the smaller firms are still confident of growing, especially when you compare the key performance indicators with the figures from last summer.
"Everything we monitor, including sales, future growth, jobs and investment, are all up across the board so we can see the short-term outlook is very positive. Thanks to our specific focus this quarter, we also know there is longer-term confidence and the areas of concern manufacturers need support to address."
Just Desserts was one of the companies questioned in the MAS Barometer and reflects the sustained confidence enjoyed by Yorkshire and Humber manufacturers.
The West Yorkshire-based handmade dessert specialist has grown 18% from the previous year after increasing sales across all foodservice markets, with a particularly strong focus on the Asian dessert bar market.
"We have come a long way since I started the business with a £40 week enterprise allowance grant," said managing director James ODwyer.
"What we wanted to do was concentrate on creating fantastic tasting desserts and then set about creating a business model that supported this original philosophy.
This has involved developing a high profile brand, a strong distribution network and continued investment in our facilities in Shipley."
He added: "In the last year alone, we have increased our workforce to 20 people, including a new delivery driver to meet customer demands. We also have a 130-strong product range, which offers something for everyone."
Just Desserts has supplied a number of high street names, including Selfridges and most recently Waterstones Café W.
(Source: BusinessDesk: 14th October 2014)