focus www.btma.org
Merc achieves 30% growth through people power
BTMA member Merc Engineering UK says that
the 30% annual growth sustained by the
company over the past 7 years, will be
maintained and probably even exceeded for
2008/2009, thanks to massive investments in
personnel and its knowledge base.
The company started up in 2001. Since then
the scope of the knowledge being brought to
bear on business planning has allowed the
company to develop a holistic strategy. Says Les
Nuttall, MD : ‘In a period being dubbed as “the
first world war for talent”, having the right
people, with the right training in the right jobs,
is the key to success. Personnel numbers have
increased from 36 to 75 over the past 3 years, and
this growth could only be achieved by taking on
the right people, with the right skills.’
In 2004, the company had a shopfloor
workforce and management comprising almost
entirely skilled engineers, with varying levels of
qualification. Realising that there is more to
growing a company than just having a factory
full of good engineers, Nuttall began to develop
a Corporate Transformation Plan, with
personnel development the core to its
implementation.
Management and administration have been
F.E.S has the capability to provide 3 and 4 axis CNC Milling and CNC
Turning including Citizen Sliding Head machines. All DNC linked with
desktop programming and editing facilities.
The introduction of a Jobshop manufacturing system and the
ability to electronically import drawings supports our customers
in being "first to marketplace".
KANBAN systems enable us to provide fully
manufactured, complete finished product to the end
user on a just in time basis.
In addition our prototyping facility offers conventional
milling, turning, grinding, light presswork, assembly and
plated/painted finishing. This service distinguishes F.E.S in
meeting the needs of the customer beyond suppliers
providing machining only.
PHARMACEUTICAL FOOD & DRINK
OPTICAL SCIENTIFIC
INSTRUMENTS LASER
ROBOTICS PETROCHEMICAL
MEDICAL AGRICULTURAL
MILITARY PRINTING
FASTEC ENGINEERING SERVICES LIMTED
Unit 8, Studlands Business Centre, Studlands Park
Avenue, Newmarket, Suffolk CB8 7AU
Tel: +44 (0) 1638 660186 Fax: +44 (0) 1638 667374
Email: sales@fastec.demon.co.uk
Enquiry Number: 59
strengthened with the addition of personnel
and training that encourage employees to
develop their skills and gain qualifications.
Merc has developed a partnership with the
French University of Dijon, Burgundy, where
two of its employees have achieved an MBA of
Business and International Trade over the past
year.
Another three graduates have joined the
company with degrees in seemingly unrelated
subjects, but the range of skills within the
company has been enhanced and their abilities
to assess and manage situations that arise has
proven itself to be an invaluable resource. The
hard skills of decision making, strategy setting,
planning and project management are now
sitting side by side with the people-related ‘soft
skills’, that many managers and leaders find
irritating and overlook. Transactional
leadership is being replaced by transformational
leadership, which shifts the focus from the ‘I
will give you this... if you do that’ style, to one
which focuses on generating vision, loyalty and
trust.
Training however, is not restricted to
management. Within the Merc Group, several
employees have been earmarked to receive
training from the Manufacturing Institute, in
Team Leader Development. The 15 week
programme (half a day per week) helps first
line managers to improve management and
lean manufacturing skills - enabling them to
get more from their shop floor team and add
value to the business. As newly promoted
Section Leaders, the course should boost their
confidence and ability to lead people, whilst
guiding them on how to put new process
improvement techniques into action.
The Admin section has been strengthened by
the completion of an NVQ Level 3 in Business
and Administration, whilst at a lower level
Merc has recently started developing an
apprentice recruitment scheme in association
with the Training 2000 organisation based in
Nelson. www.merceng.co.uk
BS EN 9001:2000, BS EN 13485:2003 & BS EN 14001:2004 Approved.
• 20 CNC Fixed Head Lathes
• 12 Multi-Spindle
Automatics
• 10 CNC Sliding
Head Lathes
• 4 CNC Prismatic
Machining Centres
• Assembly
www.machinedcomponent.com
Machined Component Systems plc, Madeley Road, Ravensbank Business Park, Redditch, Worcestershire B98 9NB
Tel: +44 ( 0 ) 1527 405910 Fax: +44 ( 0 ) 1527 585048 Email: sales@machinedcomponent.com
Enquiry Number: 60
• 24 hour production
• Lineside Delivery - KANBAN
• Photometrics as standard
86 MWP march 2009
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