Engineering

Despite the gloomy backdrop of the extinction of the last remaining UK-owned volume car maker as MG Rover went to the wall and car manufacturing ceased at the Longbridge plant in Birmingham, this month has seen a recon­firmation that the UK can still produce world class engineering achievement. Several engineering companies feature in the 2005 Queen's Awards for Enterprise, announced just a few days after the demise of Rover, which this year total 137 Awards - the high­est number for ten years.

The biggest Award winner from the engineering sector is Abbot Group of Aberdeen, which employs 1438 people in contract work associated with drilling, engineering and rig design and operation for the global oil industry. The company, which was established as recently as 1995, won its Award in the International Trade category in recognition of the tripling of its export income over the past three years to reach a value of £245 million with its main areas of operation being Azerbaijan, Angola, Russian and Oman.

Meanwhile at the other extreme in terms of size is Indamex of Peterborough, which employs just five people in sales and market­ing support operations associated with diesel engine driven gen­erating sets. The company, which is owned by the Singaporean Vibrapower Corporation, was also set up ten years ago and has achieved success in China, Africa and the Middle East. Crucial ele­ments in its success have been the effective use of both overseas visiting by personnel and a highly active website. As with Abott Group, Indamex has also been recognised in the International Trade category.

In between these two are three other companies - Rock Fall Company of Kilmarnock with 18 employees, Perkins Shibaura Engines of Peterborough with 218 employees and Rotary (International) of Newtownabbey in Northern Ireland with 360 employees. Rock Fall undertakes underwater drilling and blasting operations prior to dredging for maritime projects and has nearly doubled exports over the past three years to £6.3 million, repre­senting 90 per cent of sales. Perkins Shibaura, the youngest of all the engineering sector winners having started operations in 1996, manufactures sub-75HP diesel engines with the US taking 50 per cent of its total sales. Rotary operates in the construction sector.

In addition the engineering sector had a representative amongst the Award winners in the Innovation section in the form of Air Bearings of Poole. The company employs 163 people and since its foundation in 1993 has developed technology for driving small drill bits at ultra-high speeds, in excess of 300,000rpm, which can enable the drilling of over 600 holes a minute in the manufacture of printed circuit boards.

This year marks the 40th anniversary of the Queen's Awards, which are made on the advice of the Prime Minister assisted by an advisory committee consisting of representatives of Government, industry, commerce and the trades unions. Nearly 5,000 Awards have been made since the scheme first started.

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