Our future is safe in bright young hands

It was very encouraging to see the younger generation so well represented at last month's Manufacturing Champions Awards, which celebrated the talented and dedicated people who are driving British manufacturing forward. These young people are, after all, the future of the industry, but what is so impressive is that their ideas and energy are already having an impact today. That was especially true of the winner of the Rising Star Award, Richard Chambers, a graduate engineer at Jaguar Land Rover, who instigated a programme of changing the welding equipment used in one part of the plant and in doing so secured a 47% improvement in operational efficiency. This chimes so well with the principles we hold dear at Atlas Copco Compressors. We are committed to sustainable productivity, not only in terms of our compressed air solutions, but also in terms of our workforce, which is why we invest so much in recruitment, apprenticeships and career development. Richard provides a perfect example of why it's vital that we champion young engineers and promote efficient practices across the manufacturing spectrum. We offer him our warmest congratulations and wish him well for the future. Additionally, we thank the award organisers for providing an excellent platform for recognising the people who make UK manufacturing such an exciting industry, and we are proud to be supporting this initiative again in 2015.