Picke nell, Da id e al.
A icle
Max head oom: Making ime and space o Welsh
manu ac u ing SMEs o lou ish
Welsh Economic Re iew (WER)
P o ided in Coope a ion wi h:
Ca di Uni e si y P ess
Sugges ed Ci a ion: Picke nell, Da id e al. (2024) : Max head oom: Making ime and space o Welsh
manu ac u ing SMEs o lou ish, Welsh Economic Re iew (WER), ISSN 2397-8716, Ca di Uni e si y
P ess, Ca di , Vol. 29, pp. 17-28,
h ps://doi.o g/10.18573/we .268
This Ve sion is a ailable a :
h ps://hdl.handle.ne /10419/314319
S anda d-Nu zungsbedingungen:
Die Dokumen e au EconS o dü en zu eigenen wissenscha lichen
Zwecken und zum P i a geb auch gespeiche und kopie we den.
Sie dü en die Dokumen e nich ü ö en liche ode komme zielle
Zwecke e iel äl igen, ö en lich auss ellen, ö en lich zugänglich
machen, e eiben ode ande wei ig nu zen.
So e n die Ve asse die Dokumen e un e Open-Con en -Lizenzen
(insbesonde e CC-Lizenzen) zu Ve ügung ges ell haben soll en,
gel en abweichend on diesen Nu zungsbedingungen die in de do
genann en Lizenz gewäh en Nu zungs ech e.
Te ms o use:
Documen s in EconS o may be sa ed and copied o you pe sonal
and schola ly pu poses.
You a e no o copy documen s o public o comme cial pu poses, o
exhibi he documen s publicly, o make hem publicly a ailable on he
in e ne , o o dis ibu e o o he wise use he documen s in public.
I he documen s ha e been made a ailable unde an Open Con en
Licence (especially C ea i e Commons Licences), you may exe cise
u he usage igh s as speci ied in he indica ed licence.
h ps://c ea i ecommons.o g/licenses/by/4.0/
17
Max head oom: making ime and space o
Welsh manu ac u ing SMEs o lou ish.
Da id Picke nell1, Nick Rich1, Ga e h Da ies1, Anne e Robe s2, Pouya Sa ghad
Moghadam1, Ga y Walpole3, and Alan P ice1
1 Swansea Uni e si y 2 Ca di Uni e si y 3 Ca di Me opoli an Uni e si y
Doi: h ps://doi.o g/10.18573/we .268 Accep ed: 25/10/23
Abs ac
The Welsh manu ac u ing sec o has unde gone signi ican change o e he las decade, wi h new
echnologies, g ea e p omo ion o he ci cula economy by policymake s, and a compe i i e
en i onmen a ec ed by B exi , co id and ene gy p ice ises, all impac ing he business landscape.
Consequen ly, Welsh manu ac u ing businesses, he as majo i y o which a e mic o, small, o
medium-sized en e p ises, ace issues conce ning supply chains, aining and skills, inno a ion,
inance, in as uc u e, and sus ainabili y. This epo summa ises a ecen s udy conduc ed by
Swansea Uni e si y, on behal o he Fede a ion o Small Businesses (Picke nell e al 2023). The
esea ch in es iga ed he issues aced by Welsh small and medium-sized en e p ises (SMEs), and
iden i ied sho - e m p oblems wi h ene gy and in as uc u e, and di icul ies ec ui ing su icien
quali ied s a , as well as a lack o Welsh-based supplie s o many o he esou ces Welsh SMEs
equi ed. The esea ch also highligh ed he gap be ween sho - e m p essu es and long- e m
ision, bu ha b idging ha gap would allow Welsh manu ac u ing businesses o place hemsel es
on a mo e esilien oo ing, build skills and employmen and p epa e o u u e oppo uni ies.
In oduc ion
Welsh manu ac u ing has unde gone
signi ican changes in ecen yea s, wi h a
g ea e ocus on mo e ad anced
manu ac u ing, echnology, and inno a ion
(Welsh Go e nmen , 2021). To al employmen
(excluding sel -employed) in manu ac u ing in
Wales in 2021 was 137,400 (10.29% o o al
employmen ), 5.6% highe han in 2010 in
e ms o o al numbe s o employees (130,100),
bu ma ginally lowe as a p opo ion o o al
employmen (10.33%). The p opo ion o
Welsh GVA om manu ac u ing has also
sligh ly declined om 16.9% o 16.1% be ween
2010 and 2020. Whils his can be seen as pa
o long- e m economic ends o de eloped
economies gene ally, i is also emblema ic o
long- e m supply chain and consump ion
p oblems o he Welsh economy mo e widely
(Picke nell, 2011).
P e ious esea ch (Kapi sinis e al. 2019) has
also shown ha Wales has a simila sha e o
medium-sized i m in en e p ise coun , and
highe con ibu ion o employmen and
u no e , compa ed o he UK a e age, he
conclusion being ha he e is no ‘missing
middle’ in e ms o he p opo ion o medium-
sized i ms in he business coun in Wales. The
s udy by Picke nell e al (2023), howe e , ound
ha whils manu ac u ing in Wales has seen a
modes (5%) ise in he o al numbe o Welsh
en e p ises, his is une enly dis ibu ed, he
s onges ise occu ing in la ge i ms (wi h o e
250 employees), inc easing by o e 15%,
mic o (1-9 employees) and medium sized i ms
(50-49 employees) inc easing by nea ly 10%
This wo k is licensed unde he C ea i e Commons A ibu ion 4.0
In e na ional License.
To iew a copy o his license, isi
h p://c ea i ecommons.o g/licenses/by/4.0/.
18
each, bu small i ms (10-49 employees) seeing
a educ ion o nea ly 20%. Consequen ly, he e
appea s o be a “disappea ing middle” o hose
small i ms ha lie be ween he mic o and
medium-sized i ms.
Welsh manu ac u ing also su e s om he
ela i e pe iphe ali y o he Welsh economy.
This makes i mo e di icul o access he majo
sou ces o UK inance, including business
angels (McCa hy e al. 2014) which end o be
concen a ed in he Sou h-Eas o England.
This can also mean Welsh SMEs ace g ea e
di icul ies accessing he inancing hey need o
g ow and in es in new echnologies and
p ocesses. Ano he a ea, which can be linked
o issues o pe cei ed pe iphe ali y, conce ns
he his o ical di icul y aced by Welsh SMEs in
accessing public p ocu emen ma ke s,
compounded by nea ly hal o Wales’s own
public p ocu emen spend s ill being wi h
o ganisa ions ou side Wales (Clea e al.,
2020). This shows an a ea wi h signi ican
scope o g ow h as a ma ke o Wales’s
manu ac u ing SMEs, bu also ensions and
ade-o s o public p ocu emen egimes when
dealing wi h he inc easingly p ominen issue o
communi y bene i in he Welsh p ocu emen
en i onmen (Won ne e al., 2020). Welsh
manu ac u e s ha e also his o ically been
impac ed by ela i ely poo in as uc u e. This
includes, bu is no limi ed o, anspo links,
which end o ocus on connec ing Wales up
wi h he b oade UK economy a he han
wi hin Wales i sel . Access o b oadband
in as uc u e, which can limi hei abili y o
connec wi h cus ome s and supplie s and
adop new echnologies, has also been
pe cei ed as a pa icula p oblem in he pas ,
leading o an ex ensi e Welsh go e nmen -led
p og amme o supe as b oadband oll ou
(Hende son e al., 2021).
Mo eo e , he UK's exi om he Eu opean
Union has c ea ed signi ican unce ain y o
Welsh manu ac u e s. This is pa icula ly wi h
ega ds o ade wi h he EU, which
manu ac u ing in Wales has been ela i ely
elian upon (Dickenson e al., 2019), o
expo s, impo s, and access o alen .
Simul aneously UK ade wi hin The
Comp ehensi e and P og essi e Ag eemen
o T ans-Paci ic Pa ne ship (CPTPP)
coun ies in he pos -B exi ade e a has been
p io i ised (Dickenson e al., 2019), Welsh
manu ac u e s consequen ly acing signi ican
compe i ion om low-cos CPTPP economies,
as well as China and India, which can o e
lowe -p iced goods and se ices.
Simul aneously, explo ing new expo
oppo uni ies h ough ade ag eemen s and
pa ne ships is also some hing being
encou aged by Welsh Go e nmen policy
(Welsh Go e nmen , 2021). Welsh
manu ac u e s, howe e , also ace a need o
skilled wo ke s as he global business
en i onmen ansi ions o a g eene economy
and he skills landscape is shaped acco dingly
(Michie e al., 2022). An ageing popula ion, and
popula ion g ow h now dependen on inwa d
mig a ion, as Wales is pa o a UK labou
ma ke whe e labou mobili y akes place
la gely wi hin, a he han be ween, egions and
na ions a e also key ac o s cons aining
g ow h (Michie e al., 2022).
The e is, he e o e, a ension implied in
be ween he sho - e m emphasis on
gene a ing weal h and jobs and he longe - e m
goal o ansi ioning o a mo e ci cula
economy, wi h g ow h wi hin plane a y
bounda ies / slowe g ow h/ o deg ow h
(Cli on and Walpole, 2023). Da a om p io o
2010 (Cli on e al., 2020) iden i ies ha SMEs
in Wales a e o en almos en i ely ocused on
cu en compe i ion and day- o-day i e igh ing
so his is no a new p oblem. This p e en s
hem om unde aking e ec i e s a egic
planning and/o ne wo king o achie e g ow h
and inno a ion. Addi ionally, his su ey o
SMEs in Sou heas Wales also showed,
howe e , ha whe e hese ac i i ies a e
unde aken, he ype o ne wo king and
in o ma ion sough by SMEs om a e o en no
hose mos associa ed wi h inno a ion and
g ow h, speci ically hei ne wo king ac i i ies
we e mo e gene al, and mos esponden s did
no associa e ne wo king wi h he longe - e m
objec i es and knowledge acquisi ion mo e
associa ed wi h g ow h.
The ocus o he esea ch was he e o e o
unde s and he challenges in manu ac u ing in
Wales om a SME i ms’ pe spec i e, looking
19
a commonali ies and he p io i ies as hey see
hem. These iews we e compa ed wi h hose
as se ou by Welsh Go e nmen and
s akeholde s in manu ac u ing sec o ,
pa icula ly public sec o buye s o Welsh
manu ac u ing supplie s. The aim was o
compa e hese iews, and o explo e how hey
could be b ough oge he in p ac ice o a wide
common ho izon.
Me hod
Semi-s uc u ed in e iews ook place wi h
manu ac u ing SMEs and key s akeholde s
co e ing local go e nmen , public sec o ,
highe educa ion p ocu emen , economic
de elopmen , and ep esen a i e bodies, om
ac oss Wales. The in e iews we e ca ied ou
be ween Ap il and June 2023, and he da a
collec ed om hese o ganisa ions was
anonymised. Whils his was a small sample,
he i ms selec ed we e chosen o enable he
gauging o opinions om ac oss as many o he
sub-sec o s o manu ac u ing as possible.
Simila ly, a wide a ie y o s akeholde s we e
selec ed o allow a ull ange o opinions om
ac oss di e en o ganisa ional and SME-
in e ac ion ypes. Finally, he sample was
iden i ied as co e ing he whole o he
economic geog aphy o Wales.
O ganisa ion Type Sec o Loca ion Size
1. Uni e si y Educa ion Sou h Wales La ge
2. Public
P ocu emen
Heal h Wales-wide La ge
3. Public
P ocu emen
Heal h Wales-wide La ge
4. Ad ocacy G oup Manu ac u ing Wales-wide Small
5. Coun y Council En e p ise and Regene a ion No h Wales La ge
6. Coun y Council Business Suppo No h Wales La ge
7. SME (30) Manu ac u e o o he
anspo equipmen
Sou heas Wales Small
8. SME (32) O he manu ac u ing Sou heas Wales Mic o
9. SME (22) Manu ac u e o ubbe and
plas ic p oduc s
Sou hwes Wales Small
10. SME (24) Manu ac u e o Basic Me als Sou hwes Wales Small
11. SME (25) Manu ac u e o ab ica ed
me al p oduc s, excep machine y
and equipmen
Sou heas Wales Medium
12. SME (28) Manu ac u e o machine y
and equipmen N.E.C.
Sou hwes Wales Medium
13. SME (33) Repai o elec ical
equipmen
Sou heas Wales Medium
14. SME (30) Manu ac u e o o he
anspo equipmen
Sou hwes Wales Mic o
15. SME (10) Manu ac u e o ood p oduc s Mid Wales Medium
16. SME (25) Manu ac u e o ab ica ed
me al p oduc s, excep machine y
and equipmen
Sou hwes Wales Medium
Table 1: In e iewee De ails
No e: Figu es in pa en heses deno e SIC code
20
Findings and Discussion
The esul s o he in e iews a e ou lined
below, b oken down in o se e al sub-issues
a ound objec i es, and supply chain,
inno a ion, inance, in as uc u e, and
sus ainabili y issues. Fo each sub-sec ion a
summa y able shows he op 3 issues
iden i ied by he in e iews, bo h o SMEs and
b oade s akeholde s, he subsequen
discussion ocusing on he speci ic issues o
impo ance iden i ied bu also he key a eas o
ag eemen and di e gence be ween he wo
g oups. I is impo an o no e ha in each o
hese he esponses we e o open ques ions
a he han a closed lis o possibili ies, and so
e lec ed he conce ns i ms iden i ied o
hemsel es un il e ed by in e iewe bias.
SMEs a e mo e likely o ocus explici ly on
g ow h as he p ima y objec i e, o en seeing
inno a ion (in a ious o ms) as a ehicle o
his, whils acknowledging he need o s a
ec ui men o acili a e, and he di icul ies he
cu en si ua ion c ea es. The ollowing quo e
summa ises his: -
“We ha e a 3–5-yea plan o g ow he
business om £5m o £8m, which will equi e
us o ec ui an addi ional 12 enginee s.”
Gene ally, s akeholde s place much mo e
emphasis on sus ainabili y, wi h aining as a
acili a o , bu also expo ing (which many
SMEs do no emphasise because hey do no
expo / ha e aced issues caused by B exi so
ha e been dissuaded om p io i ising).
Summa ising, one s akeholde in ol ed in
suppo ing SMEs, said:
“SMEs ended o be jus hanging on, needing
help and wi h less iabili y. Thei aims o e he
nex ew yea s mus be o ge he igh
wo k o ce, dealing wi h he skills gaps hey
cu en ly ace, and upskilling he wo k o ce hey
al eady ha e. They also need o deal wi h he
consequences o B exi in e ms o he issues
a ound expo ing, which a e a conce n, and
whe e hey need addi ional guidance and
suppo . Mo ing owa ds ca bon ze o is also an
objec i e, wi h a need o sha e bes p ac ice in
e ms o supply chains and he ci cula
economy.”
Mo e b oadly, he in e iews highligh he
na owe cu en ocus o SMEs, in an
en i onmen whe e sho e m su i al is less
ce ain han p e iously. One SME’s quo e
summa ises his:
“I' e go o ind 150,000 pounds wo h o cos
sa ings, jus o s and s ill, and R&D disappea s,
and when you in es men in people s ops, hey
s a o disappea ”.
S akeholde s ha e a longe - e m ocus, mo e
likely in luenced by go e nmen policy
conce ning sus ainabili y and ne ze o. Typical
o his:
“In ou pu chasing, we a e he e o e looking a
bo h alue-added and he o ganisa ional a ge
o ne ze o by 2035, which means we need o
le e age ou supplie s mo e and mo e going
o wa d.”
.
Table 2: Aims and objec i es o o ganisa ion o e he nex ew yea s: (Top 3, 1 is op)
Objec i e Fi ms S akeholde s
G ow h 1
Inno a ion and knowledge sha ing 2
T aining =2
Rec ui men =3
Sus ainabili y 1
Use o Technology =3
Expo ing (including dealing wi h issues caused
by B exi )
=2
21
Table 3: Mos impo an issues, de iciencies, and u u e equi emen s wi h ega ds o supply
chains and cus ome s (Top 3)
Issues: Numbe o i ms Numbe o s akeholde s
Inpu cos s (including s a and land) 2 =2
Lack o local (Welsh) supplie s 1 1
Au oma ion / ICT =2
B exi Cos s 3
O e all, howe e , (and as a icula ed u he
below) his appea s o be a ma e o emphasis
a he han o undamen al disag eemen .
In e ms o supply chains he e is consensus
be ween i ms and s akeholde s on he lack o
local Welsh supplie s as a majo issue, wi h a
need o acili a e de elopmen in his a ea, o
assis in inc easing he esilience o Welsh
manu ac u ing as well as o bols e mul iplie
e ec s. As one SME s a ed:
“In he pas quali y ook he lead o us. We
we e no he cheapes , bu we we e e y
cus ome ocused. Now i ’s all abou cos .
…The Welsh Go e nmen need o make su e
Welsh money s ays in Wales. The supply
chain is bleeding ou he economy- wi h
money going o compe i o s.”
SMEs (and s akeholde s o a lesse ex en )
also highligh inpu cos s as o majo
impo ance. The a eas iden i ied, aw
ma e ials, componen s, ene gy, land, and
s a ing cos s, ela ed o skills, and
sus ainabili y, a e discussed u he below.
Gene ally, di icul ies caused by B exi could
be seen as pa o he wide sui e o issues, no
leas he inc eased emphasis on p ice and
cos s incu ed by longe deli e y imes:
“Fo cus ome s in Eu ope, B exi is an issue. I
has become mo e complica ed, and p icing is
now mo e o an issue, because we a e no as
compe i i e. Ou cus ome s wan a p ice
compe i i e p oduc o mo e in o, so we need
o ake cos ou o he o e ing. Ins ead, we
ha e los ma ke sha e because o he
addi ional cos s and complexi y o shipping,
delays. As a esul , hey’ e op ed o go o a
locally sou ced al e na i e, now ha i akes
10+ days, no 3 days o deli e y a e an
o de . Ou sales ha e hal ed in Eu ope,
hough Co id has also a ec ed his.”
Table 4: Mos impo an issues, de iciencies, and u u e equi emen s wi h ega ds o skills
and inno a ion (Top 3)
Issues: Numbe o i ms Numbe o s akeholde s
Poaching o ained s a (including los
knowledge)
=1
Lack o skilled wo ke s ( ec ui men ) =2 =1
P ocu emen skills =1
Need o ain 1
Need o indus ial s a egy o skills =2
22
In e ms o skills, he e was a consensus abou
he se iousness o he si ua ion, bu di e en
s a egies being employed. The lack o skilled
s a , poaching ac i i ies by i al i ms, and
necessi y (bu also di icul y in cu en ma ke
condi ions) o paying s a mo e o e ain s a
we e all men ioned by SMEs and
s akeholde s, wi h inc eased in-house aining
being he mos popula solu ion o SMEs.
“The e is a de ici in he job ma ke ega ding
skilled wo ke s, and i he e is a well-
es ablished candida e, hey demand highe
wages. So, ( he o ganisa ion) o e highe
sala y o wo ke s wi h minimal expe ience. To
o se his (de iciency o skills and
expe ience) ( he o ganisa ion) ha e p o ided
aining in-house o he new employees o he
o ganisa ion.”
and
“In he pas he e would ha e been la ge
companies wi h la ge app en iceship
numbe s and managemen aining loca ions.
These companies do no exis now, so whils
high le el leade ship aining is a ailable,
aining a he nex le el down is missing. As
a esul , succession planning is also a big
issue as he skills and expe ience a e no
he e.”
Whils SMES ended o ocus on skills a he
gene al le el a he han speci ic skills,
s akeholde s iden i ied speci ic a eas o
leade ship, sus ainabili y, and p ocu emen as
key o SME de elopmen .
“The majo de iciency we a e inding is in
e ms o ca bon awa eness and ca bon
li e acy, a p oblem ha is admi edly wide
han jus SMEs. Ou deca bonisa ion
ambi ions need us o know whe e ma e ials
come om, and o he knowledge o ickle
down o SMEs om ou la ge supplie s o
enhance g ea e unde s anding and he need
o upskilling. In e ms o inno a ion a lo is
al eady happening, bu we need o ind ways
o encou age mo e, pa icula ly in e ms o
p oblem-sol ing pull inno a ion1 a he han
he i m ha ing a g ea p oduc / inno a ion
ha hey wan o push2.”
Again, his seemed o emphasise a mo e
immedia e, sho - e m ocus o many o he
SMEs, symp oma ic o ma ke unce ain ies
and p essu es. Meanwhile he s akeholde s
emphasised skills se s mo e likely o bea ui
in he longe e m.
Issues: Numbe o i ms Numbe o
s akeholde s
Cus ome led; demand pull inno a ion as key
USP
=1 =1
Lack o in es men by cus ome s in la es
inno a ion (including sma ac o ies and senso s)
=1
Lack o inance o SME inno a ion (including
Di icul ies ob aining g an inance because o
B exi induced c oss subsidisa ion o uni e si y
esea ch)
=1
Mo e suppo i e go e nmen policy =1 =1
1
Inno aon soluons d i en by cus ome idenfied needs /
p oblems.
2
Inno aons d i en by fi ms on o hei cus ome s.
Table 5: Mos impo an issues, de iciencies, and u u e equi emen s wi h ega ds o
inno a ion (Top 3)
23
The discussion o e inno a ion was much less
p onounced han o skills. SME inno a ion
ac i i ies end o be eac i e, cus ome led,
demand pull in na u e.
“In e ms o inno a ion o us his is
inc emen ally ocused no adical. Cus ome s
come o us, ou p oduc s being a componen
no he whole o ou cus ome s’ p oduc s. This
makes ou inno a ion demand d i en, ou
cus ome s elling us he ends. So, we a e
lis ening o cus ome s and being eac i e, bu
needing o be mo e de ailed as cus ome s
ha e e y speci ic equi emen s.
E en whe e hey we e mo e p oac i ely
sus ainabili y ocused, he e was also
impo ance placed on educing cos s: -
“In componen s (and he inal p oduc ) we look
a he ailu es in he indus y and look o
imp o e by making he p oduc ligh e ,
p oduc ion mo e e icien , and he p oduc
mo e sui able o cus ome s. Fo example, we
managed o educe ma e ials used in one pa
o he p oduc , which has made a mega
imp o emen in sus ainabili y, making he
p oduc ligh e and cheape and p oduc ion
mo e e icien . We’ e also ied 25% ecycled
aluminium, which has p o ed o be s onge
han newly made, meaning we can educe he
amoun o ma e ial used, also making i
cheape ”.
The lack o cus ome in es men in he la es
inno a ions was also seen as a hind ance by
some.
“The e was a piece o machine y ha we
epai ed whe e he manual we used was 50
yea s old, as hey didn’ wan o ha e o
eplace a mul i-million-pound piece o ki
because o a small epai issue. We’ e e en
had some companies asking o ou
equipmen o pu in hei museum! This is
pa o a b oade issue in UK indus y, ha
capi al eplacemen isn’ as quick as i should
be”.
Access o inance o inno a ion was an issue
o se e al businesses:
“In e ms o inno a ion, inances dic a e wha
we a e able o do.”
The e we e also pe cep ions o some ha
because o B exi , unding ha could ha e
gone o SMEs was going o la ge businesses
and uni e si ies o compensa e o los EU
unding.
“In e ms o inno a ion, he e is a need o
( ela i ely small amoun s o ) money, bu he
g an s p ocess is e y complica ed, ime
consuming and a duous…La ge companies
ge he as majo i y o go e nmen money
because o B exi , o keep hem in he UK, o
i goes o uni e si ies o co e he unding los
because o B exi , meaning ha small
companies lose ou .”
Issues: Numbe
o i ms
Numbe o
s akeholde s
Finance o enewing old equipmen =2
No in a posi ion o inc ease deb 1 =2
Inc easing in e es a es on exis ing deb / lack o unds because o
inc easing cos s
=2
Being o ced o look o c owd o join en u e o inance g ow h
Lack o cash low =2 =1
Finance no an issue because i ms g owing cau iously (+ need o
longe e m con ac s) o ha e g ea ideas and no money
=1
Di icul ies ob aining g an inance (e.g., because o B exi induced
c oss subsidisa ion o la ge businesses)
=2
Table 6: Finance Issues (Top 3)
24
This could also be seen in e ms o he
discussion o e inance, whe e he e was a
gene al lack o impo ance placed on ex e nal
inance, pa ly because he cu en
en i onmen had c ea ed a cash low issue o
many i ms and a ocus on only using in e nal
unding,
“We a e no able o u he inc ease deb .
Ins ead, we ha e ocused on p oduc lines
ha a e p o i able, so we can in es hose
p o i s back in o he business.”
The e was also pe cei ed isk a e sion om
banks which led i ms ha we e seeking
ex e nal inance o look a al e na i e sou ces.
“In e ms o access o cash, I ha e o say he
banking a e ni y ha e no been e y
suppo i e. They a e isk a e se and became
mo e isk a e se pos -B exi and Co id. They
alk abou suppo ing g een businesses… bu
I’d say hey ha e sho a ms and deep
pocke s. We' e go abou 2,000 cus ome s in
abou 50 coun ies, huge po en ial. Bu
unlocking his means some o he hings we
wan o do jus needs us o bo ow a bi o
cash. The De elopmen Bank o Wales a e a
bi mo e suppo i e, bu he main banking
suppo ha we ha e, ou main clea ing bank,
a e no e y suppo i e a all.”
The discussion o in as uc u e also
highligh ed a deg ee o di e ence be ween
SMEs and s akeholde s which could again be
seen in e ms o he di e ence in ime ame
ocused upon. The e was consensus a ound
he lack o sui able buildings / land o
expansion as o key ele ance o bo h SMES
and s akeholde s. One quo e ha
summa ised he us a ions a ound his was:
“A o dable space is key issue…The e is a
lack o a o dable indus ial space. Business
Wales send us o Business in Focus BUT
hey ha e o ices NOT indus ial uni s. The e
is a sho age o indus ial uni s. We need
subsidised space o acili a e ou g ow h so
ha in a couple o yea s we can a o d o
lea e ha space and he nex (business) can
mo e in.”.
Conce ns o e he a ailabili y o ene gy we e
ele an o o he s.
“Cos s a e cu en ly a key issue. Ene gy in
pa icula is cos ing £1m a yea mo e han
las yea .”
And
“I 's no cos e ec i e o expedien o
indi idual uni s on he es a e o in es in an
ene gy in as uc u e.”
Issues:
Numbe o Fi ms
Numbe o s akeholde s
Sui able land / space o expansion = 1 =2
Building cos s = 1
Building egula ions =3
Lack o sui able ene gy in as uc u e =3
Lack o ene gy secu i y =3
Road in as uc u e =2
Public anspo in as uc u e (including ail)
=2
ICT in as uc u e 1
Table 7: In as uc u e issues (Top 3)