Manufacturing is something we couldn’t live our daily lives without. The role of the manufacturing sector is to take raw materials and convert them into finished products - whether that be through the use of labour, tools, chemicals, machines or biological processes.

Careers include, but are not limited to, roles such as technologists, technicians, engineers, designers, machinists, and welders. UK manufacturing accounts for 9% of the UK’s GDP (economic size and health) and its impact is no different in Buckinghamshire - the stats below speak for themselves on the importance of manufacturing for our local economy and jobs market.

FACTS AND FIGURES:

• Buckinghamshire is home to around 1,500 manufacturing firms – see below for our top employers.

• These firms employ in the range of 18,500 workers. 

• Formula 1 and other motorsport businesses in the Silverstone Technology Cluster are highly reliant on state-of-the-art technologies, cutting-edge design and manufacturing, particularly those that come from local innovation. 

• Buckinghamshire is well known for its ‘top-tier’ manufacturing capabilities in areas such as Engineering in Aviation, Motorsport and Aerodynamics, Additive Manufacturing and 3D Printing, Lightweight Composites and Carbon Fibre.

• Compared to its national counterparts, Buckinghamshire is more specialised in 5 sub-sectors of manufacturing. These are the manufacture of basic pharmaceutical products and preparations; manufacture of computer, electronic and optical products; treatment and disposal of non-hazardous waste; manufacture of other transport equipment; and civil engineering.

THE WORKFORCE:

Some of the key employers within the local manufacturing trade are Hovis, McCormick, Martin-Baker, Bosch, Safran Electrical & Power UK Ltd, Hypnos Ltd, Crendon Timber Engineering, Vitalograph Ltd, Nordson Test and Inspectio, Ercol Furniture, Mondelez, Sabeti Wain Aerospace, and TSL Projects.

Why not visit their websites and see if your skills and qualifications match the roles they are looking to hire for? If you are keen to get into this workforce and need to up-skill or study further, see below for what routes you can take into one of these careers.

ROUTES INTO MANUFACTURING ROLES:

Use the list below as a starting point for what you could study to work within the Manufacturing sector in Buckinghamshire.

• Science, Design and Engineering courses are on offer at all local Colleges and would provide a great foundation for going to work in a related manufacturing role.

• Bucks New University offers Undergraduate courses in Engineering Design, Building and Construction Engineering, and Product Design.