More than half of exporting-manufacturers are experiencing an increase in overseas sales and orders, according to the survey, and the majority of the sector’s growth is coming from international trade. Service sector exporters reported improvements on the previous quarter’s results, with 36% saying that overseas sales have increased.

With only 23% of service providers selling overseas – compared to 57% of manufacturers – there is concern that the sector’s dependency on a fragile UK market will result in it experiencing slow or stagnant growth. The weak advance orders (+3% net increase) reported by the sector suggest that this weak performance is likely to continue into the next quarter.

Despite the fragile UK market, business confidence remains high. Manufacturers are more optimistic than services with 70% expecting their turnover to increase over the next 12 months compared to 58%, which is associated to the sector’s strong overseas performance.

Manufacturers are also leading the way in terms of job creation with one third increasing their workforce compared to one fifth of service providers.

To read the full report, visit>>> http://www.yourchamber.org.uk/images/stories/pdfs/QESReport_QTR2_2011.pdf

The Leeds company will work with Sanipex Group to distribute its products in the United Arab Emirates and Indian markets.

The agreement, reported in the Yorkshire Evening Post, follows soon after JT’s link-up with Konig to supply the 2.2 billion euro German market with their designer trays.

Meanwhile surgical device manufacturer Surgical Innovations is on the acquisition trail according to reports from TheBusinessDesk.com, following a leap in revenues and pre-tax profits.

The Leeds-based company is continuing to review acquisition opportunities in the area of minimally invasive surgery “where strong synergies exist with the group and where our R&D expertise and in-house manufacturing capabilities can create improvements to the products and cost savings for the end user.”

Chairman Doug Liversidge said: “We have continued to invest heavily in the business while research and development capability has undergone a step-change to speed up new product development and improvements to our existing technology.

This follows recent news of Leeds textile manufacturer Hainsworth racking up a £1 million order for China’s booming piano manufacturing industry and expanding pool and snooker markets.

And possibly a little tongue in cheek, Skopes’ commercial manager Malcolm Campbell is considering a fabric with a small amount of wolf hair, branded: “A wolf in sheep’s clothing: Are you man enough?”

He believes macho young Americans would beat a path to Leeds for this sort of gear!

Although UK manufacturers have been through some tough times, our latest survey of UK manufacturers has some encouraging news with almost two-thirds of manufacturers (62 per cent) expecting the availability of credit to remain the same or improve in the coming 12 months. It also reveals that the industry is responding positively to the economic challenges by making use of available public sector funding, with 63 per cent declaring a good understanding of available grants and incentives whilst 33 per cent of manufacturers have sought capital from alternative sources such as shareholders or parent companies.

The overriding message is that while the market is tough, manufacturers have been resilient in their response. The easing of available credit is very welcome, but there are no signs of complacency with manufacturers seeking other appropriate sources of finance where necessary. Manufacturers have also proactively sought to limit their exposure to bad debt, with 65 per cent increasing the frequency of customer credit checks over the past 12 months.

The survey highlights grant funding as one area where there is still some room for improvement. Whilst the majority of manufacturers have a good understanding of grants and other incentives, a significant minority remain in the dark. Almost one in five said they did not know where to look for information on grants, for example, with another 19 per cent not yet having considered grants as a source of funding – this suggests that some manufacturers are losing out on additional funding.

The report found that 55 per cent of manufacturers intend to invest in plant and machinery over the coming 12 months, with 54 per cent of respondents intending to invest in new product development. This shows the appetite for investment from the industry so we would encourage all manufacturers to take advantage of the funding available to them. This will be important as manufacturing emerges from the recession and looks to a future which will require investment in R&D, training and retraining and capital expenditure on new plant and machinery.

Overseas markets

The report also asked manufacturers about their intentions for the coming 12 months, focusing on investment and exports. Seventy-one per cent of respondents said they expected to increase their exports over the next 12 months, with 41 per cent planning on a double-digit increase. However, a sizeable minority of 29 per cent expected no increase at all. Seventy-five per cent of manufacturers will focus their export strategy on the Eurozone. The US and China were identified as the other key regions, with 45 per cent looking to increase trade with the US and 30 per cent with China.

These are confident figures from UK manufacturers, without being overly bullish. As the comparative value of sterling remains low and confidence in global markets picks up, there will be opportunities for manufacturers to increase their exports. However, for every willing seller you need a willing buyer and as growth in many of the major economies remains anaemic the extent to which this can happen is to some degree out of UK manufacturers’ hands.

(Survey was carried out 2-9 February 2010 by Findlay Media in association with Deloitte, and surveyed 101 manufacturers based in the UK. “Pound for Pound” is the second in a series of quarterly Point of View surveys examining key issues affecting UK manufacturers in seeking access to finance. The full report is available at www.deloitte.co.uk/pointofview