Qimtek’s latest Contract Manufacturing Index shows that the UK subcontract market continued to grow in the first quarter. The index was up 4.5% in the first three months of 2024, building on the strong upswing at the end of 2023.Projects and budgets that had been on hold continue to be unlocked as manufacturers place orders and suppliers are busy quoting for work. February was the strongest month since March 2023.

The baseline for the index is 100, which represents the average size of the subcontract manufacturing market between 2014 and 2018.The CMI for Q1 2024 was 82, compared with 78.5 for the previous quarter.Machining accounted for 48% of the market, up 35% on the previous quarter, while fabrication represented 49%, down 5% on the previous quarter.

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