UK machinery sector now speaks with one voice

Britain`s manufacturing and machinery industries can now present their concerns to Government and the media with a single, unified voice. Eight of the sector`s main trade associations have formed a new grouping, called the Engineering and Machinery Alliance (EAMA), which will represent them on issues of common concern.

Together, the member associations represent more than 4,000 companies employing at least 400,000 people and generating sales worth well over £20bn a year. They include the British Fluid Power Association (BFPA), the British Gear Association (BGA), the Machine Tool Technologies Association (MTTA), the Mechanical and Metal Trades Confederation (Metcom), and the Processing and Packaging Machinery Association (PPMA).

EAMA will be chaired by Mike Legg, former president of the MTTA and managing director of Hitachi Seiko. The association`s secretariat, based at the MTTA`s London headquarters, will be headed by Jim Hewitt, who was chief executive of the BGA until his retirement earlier this year.

"The breadth and critical mass represented by these associations makes this a very significant alliance, enabling us to speak to Government - especially the DTI and Treasury - with a unified and forceful voice," says Legg.

"We will draw attention to the danger of the apparent two-tier economy," he adds, "and show how every other major world economy recognises the importance of a strong manufacturing base to create the wealth which, in turn, supports service industry growth and healthy consumer expenditure, without creating inflation or a substantial balance-of-trade deficit".

The DTI has welcomed the creation of the alliance and says that it looks forward to working closely with the new body in future.