InsideOutsourcing issue #13

Wow, what a month! We’ve got plenty of stories to reflect on in issue #13 of InsideOutsourcing, so let’s not delay…

Apprentice Electrical Engineer Sophie Young is back in the limelight as media outlets pick up on her The Manufacturer Top 100 inclusion and her rallying cry for more ‘girl power’ in industry.

We’ve released details behind the 50/50 principle, an important internal measure that helps to realise our uppermost pledge of ‘making outsourcing easy’.

And Frank Cox, PP C&A’s longest serving employee celebrates his 43-year tenure and the accumulation of years’ experience held within the company by telling tales of the early days.

Keep reading for the full stories as well as details on the launch of a brand new campaign that breaks down the tension between innovation and resistance to change.

Sophie bangs the drum for more ‘girl power’ in industry

Attracting more females into engineering is the mission for Sophie Young, who has won a clutch of awards in the early part of her career.

Sophie, Apprentice Electrical Engineer at PP C&A is hoping that her own personal journey can act as an inspiration for hundreds of young girls and women looking to carve out a possible role in manufacturing.

The 20-year-old has already secured a major title at the Ladder for the Black Country Awards and recently added to this by being named in The Manufacturer Top 100 in the ‘Young Pioneer’ category.

“To be named in The Top 100 really was a highlight. I never expected it in a million years, especially when you consider some of the people I’m sharing this honour with. I’m definitely going to use the title to inspire others to follow their industrial dreams.”

(Source: Read more)

Strategic outsourcing: The 50/50 principle will put you at ease

To build a sense of security and make outsourcing trouble-free for machine builders and OEMs, an outsourcing partner like PP C&A will take several measures.

The “50/50 principle” is a way to ensure every decision-maker and stakeholder is looked after and heard throughout the process. It splits 10 key points equally into two parts:

50% of the process builds the right environment to enter a partnership, and the other 50% builds trust in the partner’s competency and the final decision to outsource.

(Source: Read more)

To be Frank!

Recently mounted on the wall in reception at PP C&A is an installation of 80 faces. These faces are those of the company’s longest serving employees. From six, all the way up to 43 years’ dedication.

The board represents 1,163 years’ combined service! If served consecutively, this would take us back to 860 AD, when?Viking raiders sailed to England and attacked Winchester, the capital of Wessex.

Thankfully, despite coming through recessions and more recently, a global pandemic, the business hasn’t suffered a long enduring battle like that of the Danes and Saxons!

In fact, it has been a time rich with success and packed with celebrations of all shapes and sizes. And there’s one person who has experienced it all – at the very top of the long service wall is Frank Cox.

(Source: Read more)

Shock of the New: The tension between innovation and resistance to change

If you’re at all familiar with the history of modern art, then you’ll also likely be familiar with a very popular 1980 documentary series by Robert Hughes, accompanied by a book of the same name:?The Shock of the New.

The term “the shock of the new” encapsulates the idea that the introduction of innovative artistic techniques, subject matters, and approaches challenged established norms and expectations.

Both the book and series highlight the radical shifts in artistic expression and the tension between innovation and resistance to change, illustrating how the shock of encountering these new forms of art was a transformative experience for both artists and society at large.

When you’re accustomed to the idea, it’s easy to borrow the term to explain the current landscape of emerging industrial markets today, and the associated manufacturing practices developing through a purpose-driven need.

When adopting new technologies and exploring emerging industries, there is often a disruptive element involved. The introduction of automation and robotics, agritech systems, and micromobility initiatives for example, can challenge established norms, disrupt traditional industries, and require individuals and organisations to adapt to new ways of doing things.

This campaign homes-in on several emerging sectors, used as scene setters for the challenges restricting widespread adoption. We’ll also gain the knowledge and insights from industry experts at the forefront of each of these markets and associated technologies to try and make sense of the phenomenon.

Matthew Aldridge (Managing Director, igus UK / RBTX Robotix Marketplace ), Rowan Crozier MBE (CEO C. Brandauer & Co Ltd ), Scott Thompson (Programme Director, Niche Vehicle Network), and Emilio Loo Monardez (Lead of AgriTech in Automation System Group, WMG, University of Warwick / WMG Business ) all contribute to the campaign’s first blog and offer insight direct from the sharp end of their niches.

They’ll cover cutting cost and complexity to encourage wider adoption of robotics and automation, how we need to be ready on many fronts for the EV window of opportunity, overcoming micromobility’s ‘chicken and egg’ situation, and why rethinking agriculture is at the centre of some of the world’s biggest issues.

(Source: Read more)

Creatively inspired!

Supporting artwork featured throughout the Shock of the New is generated by ai prompts to depict emerging markets and technologies in different modern art styles - A nod to the inspiration of Robert Hughes’ Shock of the New, along with the recent disruption and adoption of artificial intelligence technologies.

Thank you for reading

We hope you enjoyed this issue of InsideOutsourcing. Your comments and engagements are welcomed, and we look forward to sharing more from inside PP C&A, the UK's leading and award-winning strategic outsourcing provider to machine builders and OEMs.