A new report marking six months since the COP26 climate summit suggests that UK manufacturers are making clearer progress towards net zero, with 9 in 10 planning to ramp up action.
The report, produced by manufacturers’ organisation Make UK, provides a snapshot of how the manufacturing sector has responded to the climate crisis since world leaders gathered in Glasgow last year to accelerate action.
Northern leadership
In total, over a third (35 per cent) of the manufacturers surveyed by Make UK now have a 'fully formed’ net zero strategy in place, and almost two thirds (65 per cent) have taken positive steps towards net zero.
The net zero agenda also seems to grow in importance the further north in the country a manufacturer is located, with 48 per cent of companies in the North saying net zero is currently a high priority for their business – significantly higher than in the Midlands (28 per cent) and South (25 per cent).
Efficiency-first approach
Efficiency improvements form the core of most strategies, with cutting energy consumption and making production processes more efficient cited as the main priority for 77 per cent and 48 per cent of companies respectively.
Other important areas of focus for the manufacturers surveyed include gaining competitive advantage through innovative products or services (38 per cent) and being listed as an approved supplier in public/private sustainable procurement schemes (24 per cent).
'Huge leaps forward'
Commenting on the report, Make UK CEO Stephen Phipson said:
"Britain’s manufacturers have long shown that they are at the forefront of innovation globally and they have already gone a long way to improve their processes in the quest to reach net zero. They are making huge leaps forward and have taken much from initiatives such as COP26 as a driver for further change.
"With energy costs at historic highs, cutting energy consumption has taken on a further layer of urgency, and new business opportunities from the green economy make change even more attractive."
Gain in-house skills
According to the survey, the most commonly cited barrier to progress is a lack of in-house skills or expertise to implement changes.
