Two North Yorkshire firms are boosting their businesses with the latest technology thanks to funding from Government initiative Made Smarter.
We are so lucky to have such a wealth of technical and engineering businesses here in the constituency. I've been continuing my work connecting local engineering businesses with apprentices, so this funding will be hugely beneficial to these business' ability to keep growing and expanding their teams. Made Smarter is a national movement to drive growth amongst local SME manufacturing businesses and advance the UK economy.
Malton-based HMi Elements was the first in the region to receive funding from Made Smarter, receiving over £19,000, with HMi Elements' director Howard Gould saying the grant would be invested in technology to automate part of its production process where a high degree of precision is essential.
Hunprenco, a precision engineering firm near Filey received a grant of £20,000. This will allow them to add an advanced robot to their workforce which can carry out more complex and dangerous processes, minimising risk to operators and allowing them to work in other areas.
I've reached out to both businesses and hope to visit them in the coming weeks to learn more about how this funding will benefit them.
Ben Henry, Production Director at Hunprenco, said: “The robot will be very much part of the team. It’s not a replacement for staff – it means our staff can be deployed elsewhere. We can literally turn out the lights and leave the robot running, so we’re cutting energy costs too.”
Made Smarter is a national programme, managed in our region by York & North Yorkshire Growth Hub – part of York & North Yorkshire Local Enterprise Partnership.
Mike Pennington, Business Relationship Manager for Made Smarter in the York and North Yorkshire Region, said: “We want to see more and more manufacturing and food producing companies in York and North Yorkshire embracing the latest technology and digital production processes. I’m looking forward to announcing more successful applications very soon.”
York and North Yorkshire businesses in the manufacturing sector, including food or drink, are invited to apply for a Made Smarter grant. For further details, email Mike Pennington at [email protected].
