Focus: South West
As one of the most diverse and capable aerospace regions in the world – and a leading choice for overseas investors – the South West of England attracts many of the world’s top aerospace companies to this part of the UK, including Airbus, Rolls-Royce, AgustaWestland, GKN Aerospace, GE Aviation Systems, BAE Systems, Messier-Dowty, Cobham, Meggitt, Thales, Ultra Electronics, Honeywell, MBDA, Moog, Boeing and QinetiQ
The South West is at the Forefront of Global Aerospace
The South West of England has been associated with the aerospace industry for more than 100 years and, today, the South West region is at the forefront of developments in aircraft structures, aero-engines, rotorcraft, unmanned air systems, avionics, landing gear and a wide variety of systems and components. Aerospace activity spans both civil and defense markets. For example, the Ministry of Defence’s “Defence Equipment and Support” organization, located in the South West region, controls an annual budget of $25.5 billion and employs more than 7,000 people.
An Outstanding Business Environment
The factors that make the South West of England such an outstanding location for aerospace investors are not only to do with South West sector-specific capabilities, but also to do with the area’s unique business environment. The South West is growing faster than anywhere else in the country, due almost entirely to inward migration. People are attracted to the South West by its exceptional quality of life. Surveys consistently rank the South West region as among the best in the UK according to a wide range of criteria – low population density, high life expectancy, good air quality, low crime rates, high levels of disposable income, attractive environment, high levels of happiness and motivation, and so on.
An Expanding Workforce in the South West
As a result of its rapidly expanding population, the South West of England has a plentiful and constantly replenished workforce. Labor costs in the South West region are approximately 7% lower than the UK average (Source: ASHE), yet, despite this, the South West enjoys a higher-than-average percentage of people educated to degree standard or above – at 28%, the South West is the fourth most qualified region in the UK (Source: ONS APS).
Many of the South West region’s 14 universities and 40 further education colleges have world-class specialisms in aerospace-related research and education, which is an advantage for companies in the South West region and a major incentive for investors. Workers in the South West also tend to be more productive than their counterparts in other parts of the UK – the Office of National Statistics identified that the South West is the most productive region in the UK outside London and the Greater South East. A wellbeing@work survey also found that workers in the South West enjoy the highest levels of happiness, motivation and pleasure in their surroundings. All of these factors combine to make the South West an ideal location to attract, recruit and retain high-caliber staff.
A Spirit of Innovation
The South West is also notable for its extraordinary spirit of innovation. The South West region – which has produced entrepreneurs like Tim Smit, creator of the Eden Project, James Dyson, inventor of the dual cyclone bagless vacuum cleaner, and Joe McGeehan, pioneer of wireless communication – spends 10% more on R&D than the UK average and is home to many internationally renowned research institutions. Patent applications for all high-tech sectors are higher in the South West than the UK average (Source: Euro Stat 2005). The South West region also has the highest levels of self-employment in the country (Source: ONS APS) and the best three-year business survival rates (Source: Regional Indicators).
Its successes speak for themselves. The South West is home to one of the largest microelectronics sectors in Europe (and the world’s second-largest silicon design hub around Bristol); the South West leads the world in wave technologies and marine research; it has the second-largest creative industries sector outside London and the largest financial services sector outside the capital; and is renowned across the world for bio manufacture and bio diagnostics.
Global R&D
Aerospace-related research is being carried across the South West of England by its many aerospace companies, universities, technical consultancies (including Atkins, QinetiQ, Halcrow and Fraser Nash) and the “Defence Science and Technology Laboratory” – one of the largest research organizations in Europe. Companies in the South West region are involved in major global aircraft programs, including Airbus A350 XWB, A400M, Boeing 787, Joint Strike Fighter, Eurofighter, Typhoon and the AW101 helicopter.
New National Composites Center in the South West
The UK government recently announced over $33 million of funding to further advance the development of composite materials, whose lightweight, super-strength properties are in increasing demand, from airplane wings to turbine blades to racing cars and more. A key component of the UK’s National Composites Strategy is the development of a “National Composites Centre”, which will be located in Bristol, in the South West of England. The center, due to open in March 2011, will deliver world-class innovation in the design and rapid manufacture of composites. It will provide an international hub, linking activities across all sectors of the UK in research, education, training, technology transfer and the incubation of new enterprises. This will expand and build on the strong links that exist between industry and higher and further education in the South West of England.
The South West Meeting Skills Needs
Currently, the UK government estimates the composites market to be worth around $1.5 billion to the British economy. However, it forecasts that the UK offshore wind turbine blade and aerospace wing market alone could be worth $33bn by 2020. In preparation for this rapid expansion, the South West Composites Gateway has been set up to galvanise skills provision in the South West region. The $800,000 project provides companies and academics working in the field of advanced composites with advice and guidance on design, manufacturing procurement, training and education to ensure that the future needs of the rapidly growing composites sector are met. The South West RDA (the South West Economic Development Agency) has also helped to fund composites facilities at Airbus and the University of Bristol, as well as providing significant contributions to the Integrated Wing and Next Generation Composite Wing.
Strength in Renewables
The focus on composites technology, with its low-carbon credentials, reflects the South West of England’s strength as a center for environmental technologies. The South West region leads the world in wave energy technology. It is home to the first wind farm in the UK, the first centralized anaerobic digestion power station, the first commercial pyrolysis plant and the first underwater tidal stream turbine in the world. In addition, planning permission has also been granted in the South West for the UK’s first bioethanol plant, which is based in Somerset.
The South West of England leads the world in marine research. Seven of the world’s most forward-thinking marine science and technology organizations come together under the banner of Plymouth Marine Sciences Partnership (PMSP) in the South West region – Plymouth Marine Laboratory, the University of Plymouth’s Marine Institute, the Marine Biological Association of the UK, the National Marine Aquarium, the Diving Diseases Research Center, the Navy’s Hydrographic, Meteorological & Oceanographic Training Group and the Sir Alister Hardy Foundation for Ocean Sciences.
Plans to co-locate these organizations onto one site will create a state-of-the-art marine science and technology campus to rival the best in the world and place the South West in the top five locations for marine biotechnology. In addition, $22.5 million was also invested recently to create the PRIMaRE institute, a collaboration between the universities of Exeter and Plymouth which will provide multi-disciplinary expertise in marine energy research, development and innovation.
Opportunities for Clean Technology Investors
There are considerable opportunities in the South West region for renewable energy companies. The UK must achieve 15% of total energy generation from renewable sources by 2020. At present it achieves only 1.5%. Already 150 renewable electricity schemes have sprung up in the South West of England and more are being created all the time. There are great opportunities, too, in the waste and recycling sector. The country’s recycling industry needs to double to $33.6 billion by 2018 to meet current EU targets for waste, and the South West is actively encouraging companies involved in biodegradable wastes and plastics to invest here. Across the South West region there are 13 world-leading higher-education institutions and research organizations including the Bristol Technologies for the Environment Institute (BRITE Futures) and Bath Institute for Sustainable Energy and Environment (I-SEE).
The South West has an Established Infrastructure
For aerospace, composites and clean technologies investors, the opportunity to become part of an established and highly respected cluster is a real benefit. Being close to world-class companies, universities and centers of excellence provides opportunities for collaboration, supply partnerships and joint research initiatives. A well-developed infrastructure of supply companies, training providers and support organizations makes it easier for overseas companies to become established in the South West region and achieve their plans for expansion and growth.
Sector Support
The aerospace industry is supported by a dynamic trade association, the West of England Aerospace Forum (WEAF). It has 900 members and represents the interests of industry at a regional and national level. Environmental technology companies benefit from the fact that the South West of England was the first region to set up a dedicated support agency for their sector. Regen SW is a highly respected trade association that works to accelerate uptake of the South West region’s considerable renewable energy resources and champions initiatives to reduce energy demand. It organized the UK’s first conference on marine energy and was named Best Public Sector Organization 2008 by the UK Micropower Council.
Support for Investors
Tailored support for investors is provided by South West RDA’s US-based International Business Team. It can help with finding suitable premises, business introductions, recruiting staff, identifying research partnerships and advising on setting up your business in the UK.
For more South West information, contact:
Michael Strohecker
E-mail: michael.strohecker@investsw.com
Kathryn Ellis
E-mail: kathryn.ellis@investsw.com
Website: www.investsw.com
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