U.K. Auto Industry Upbeat on Job, Production Growth

Growing car production and the rise of connectivity will deliver huge opportunities for suppliers and create 28,000 jobs in the U.K. automotive supply chain by 2020, a new report predicts.

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders report estimates British vehicle production is set to reach a record 2 million units annually by 2020, up 33% from 1.5 million units now.

This will require an additional 9,500 employees at vehicle manufacturers and almost three times the current number of workers at the component companies that supply them.

SMMT says for every job created in a vehicle plant, it is estimated that on average between three and five are created in the wider economy.

Huge investments recently have been committed by automakers and component suppliers, with more than £2 billion announced this year.

New-car production in the U.K. is up more than 50% since 2009 and automotive products account for a greater share of exports than ever before at 11.8%. The average value of cars exported from the region has doubled in the past decade.

The SMMT says Automotive Council figures show 41% of the average U.K.-built vehicle now is locally sourced, up from 36% in 2011.

“With up to 80% of the components that go into a car capable of being produced here, the potential for supply-chain growth has been pegged at some £4 billion ($6.1 billion),” the industry group says.

SMMT CEO Mike Hawes says the recovery of the U.K. automotive-supply chain is gathering pace and the new report shows opportunities for further growth and development will be plentiful in coming years, particularly as the drive toward fully connected and autonomous-vehicle technologies accelerates.

SMMT data shows the U.K. automotive industry directly employs 160,000 people in manufacturing and 800,000 indirectly. More than 30 manufacturers build 70-plus models, supported by 2,500 component providers.