The Welsh Government recently announced its new innovation strategy for Wales at the Miskin facility of Renishaw. During the launch event at the company’s manufacturing site near Cardiff, the Welsh Government outlined its aspiration to become an innovation-based nation and bring better healthcare, jobs and prosperity for businesses and local communities.

At the event, the Minister for Economy, Vaughan Gething, outlined the Welsh Government’s vision of an innovation strategy for a stronger, fairer, greener Wales, with its plans to cover four mission areas: education; economy; health and wellbeing; and climate and nature. To support this strategy at the event, Renishaw showcased its STEM education centre for local schools, spoke to visitors about its £65m investment to increase manufacturing capacity with a focus on sustainability, and gave tours of its advanced manufacturing facility.
For further information www.renishaw.com

The Manufacturing Technology Centre’s Liverpool facility is to be the base for a new advanced manufacturing training centre delivering skills to businesses and learners in Liverpool and the northwest.Courses offered will include a new Level 2 Lean Manufacturing Operative apprenticeship. The one-year apprenticeship programme includes subjects such as lean manufacturing, production, quality control, problem solving, workplace organisation, and health and safety.

The centre will also deliver an HNC in Engineering course over a two-year period. The programme aims to empower students to develop the specialist knowledge and skills to help their organisations effectively harness the power of new and emerging manufacturing technologies.Both courses begin in October with further programmes announced soon.
For further information www.the-mtc.org

Steve Haddrell, key account manager at Unison Ltd – inventor of all-electric tube manipulation -is now sales director at sister company, Nukon Lasers UK. In addition to his fulfilling his new role, Haddrell will continue to support Unison’s tube-bending machinery customers in the Midlands and south of England. Nukon Lasers UK became the exclusive UK and Ireland distributor for Nukon’s European-made fibre laser sheet and tube-cutting machines in autumn 2021. Previously working for 600 Group’s laser division and Yamazaki Mazak’s optonics division, Haddrell has been akey account manager at Unison since 2009.
For further information www.nukonlasers.co.uk

EngineeringUK, a not-for-profit organisation with a mission to inspire the next generation of engineers, hasnamed Iain Conn as its new chair, taking over from Malcolm Brinded on 1 October 2023. Conn’s career includes 34 years’ executive experience in the energy sector at BP and Centrica, alongside non-executive roles at Rolls-Royce and BT. He was an external member of the Council of Imperial College, a trustee at Movement to Work, and was responsible for BP’s early role in Project Enthuse, which supports STEM teaching and learning across the UK, helping to improve young people’s engagement in STEM subjects.
For further information www.engineeringuk.com