Case study: teleprompter firm feeling pinch

Husband and wife small-business owners Richard and Angela Bush are at the high-tech end of manufacturing and say they well-served by skilled sub-contractors around the UK. But they are nervous about the year ahead and the longer-term future of manufacturing in a country that, they feel, has flagged up the importance of service industries. "Most of the people in government just don't understand manufacturing," says Angela. Their Warwickshire-based business, Richard Bush Ltd (RBL), designs and assembles teleprompters such as those used by newsreaders and live TV shows including Strictly Come Dancing . With television budgets slashed in the wake of a global advertising slump, RBL is now really feeling the downturn. "It has hit our business in this financial year, and turnover is down 15%-20% on a year ago," says Richard. "The last three months have been the worst for three years." He thinks no one can say with confidence that recovery is under way. RBL has taken a conscious decision to stay small and employs only four people, partly to avoid the legislation that applies to bigger workforces. It has instead expanded by subcontracting, with many of its suppliers in the UK. "There are still a significant number of very good companies in the UK that have invested in technology, plants and equipment," says Richard. "One thing that really makes me angry is the negative perception of manufacturing in this country. We do manufacture good things, advanced things and we have clever, innovative people. But we talk ourselves down. "Successive governments have been in hock to the idea the service industries are the future of the economy. Once we lose the supply chain, once we lose the knowledge, it's hard to rebuild the manufacturing industry, whereas you can with services." As a result, the appeal of manufacturing has dwindled in the eyes of the next generation of workers. "The people with the knowledge are getting older and we are not able to get young people picking up the baton and carrying it forward." KA