Pictured above: (l-r) Mark Fellows (Servosteel), Rachel Eade
(MAS-WM Auto), Sanjin Hamza (Servosteel), Tom McDermott (Birmingham
City University) and Matt Clive (UKTI)
Automotive dating was top of the agenda recently when
'Autolinks' rolled into Birmingham for the seventh year in a
row.
More than 25 companies from the region's supply chain showcased
their expertise and capabilities during face-to-face meetings with
car manufacturers including Aston Martin, SAIC and BMW.
The event, which was backed by the Manufacturing Advisory
Service -West Midlands Auto, UKTI and Birmingham City University,
also gave firms the opportunity to talk to technology partners and
explore the potential of knowledge transfer partnerships for
developing new products and meeting the low carbon agenda.
It is anticipated that in excess of 100 meetings were held
during the day, with early estimates suggesting millions pounds of
new work could have been identified for the West Midlands.
Rachel Eade, Automotive Cluster Manager, was delighted that the
sector dismissed the downturn of the last twelve months and instead
focused on aggressively attacking new opportunities.
"Autolinks continues to offer companies the most cost and time
effective way of meeting with potential new clients, many of which
you would struggle to get in front of in a conventional way."
She continued "We had more than 25 SMEs in attendance, such as
Brandauer, Powertrain, Sorion and Servosteel. The feedback about
the contacts they made during the event has been extremely positive
and there is already demand for a similar event next year.
"Low Carbon was also a major talking point and there were plenty
of discussions about how the supply chain can get involved and work
with academia to explore existing expertise."
Rowan Crozier, Sales Director at contract presswork and
stampings specialist Brandauer, added his support:
"Autolinks is an essential way for us to meet potential
customers and indeed suppliers in one day and all under one roof.
It opens doors, reduces travel time and, by booking the meeting in
advance, you know you are going to see the people you really want
to.
"We made three excellent contacts on the day which could well
lead to new value added contracts."
Birmingham City University's Technology, Engineering and
Environmental faculty used Autolinks to showcase its KTP Projects
and the highly acclaimed Formula Student Racing Car.
Students spoke with delegates about future careers and many
attendees were delighted to see the next generation of motorsport
and automotive engineers being developed in the West Midlands.
Rachel concluded: "Autolinks represents the largest event yet to
be held by MAS-Auto and the good news for suppliers is that we have
other workshops and seminars in place for the next few months,
including 'selling to the MoD' and a special breakfast meeting with
a key industry figure."
MAS-WM Auto is a dedicated offer for automotive suppliers and is
part of the organisation's umbrella of support it offers to more
than 1900 manufacturers every year.
The service is designed to provide the latest information and
data for the sector, whilst also promoting the West Midlands'
supply chain to domestic and international customers.
Individual company advice and mentoring will also be available,
including a referral service to other support programmes.