What impact has COVID-19 had on the UK automation sector?
Manufacturing has been impacted more than some segments by the need to maintain social distancing. Where there would normally be a lot of people working on the factory floor, some production lines have had to slow down, shut down or readapt. The distribution and warehousing segment, however, has never been busier due to the massive rise in e-commerce. Businesses that have already invested in intelligent warehousing are at an advantage because they are able to distribute products faster with fewer people on the shop floor.
How did VINCI Energies UK & RoI rise to the challenge?
We have coped with the pandemic well and I am extremely proud of the agility, resilience and entrepreneurial spirit among our people. We adapted quickly to support our customers and have even developed some new offers, such as the Cougar Automation anti-COVID alarm system. This uses IoT-connected security passes to remotely monitor the number and location of people in a building to maintain safe social distancing and trigger cleaning alerts. It can even work with body temperature sensors and scanners to determine proper use of PPE, as well as contact tracing systems.
How do you see the outlook for 2021?
Social distancing and the boom in online retail will most likely continue until everyone is vaccinated, which makes the need for smart technologies even more pressing. Some factories are trying to work out solutions but we may need the world economy to pick up a bit before we see the real level of investment required to make a difference. The digital transformation of warehouses, however, is accelerating because businesses are already seeing a large return on that investment. It’s exciting because we are still at the beginning of this revolution and there will be many projects to implement smart technologies coming this year and beyond.
What does that mean for VINCI Energies UK & RoI?
We are in good shape for 2021. The benefits of digital transformation are increasingly understood in the industry and we are uniquely skilled to support businesses make the shift thanks to our ‘Power of Three’ strategic plan. As well as the automation expertise from our Actemium business units, we also have the ICT knowhow from our Axians teams and high-voltage electrical engineering from Omexom. This means we have everything we need to programme and connect the different machines, robots and PLCs to make industrial automated operations smart and more efficient in terms of both production and energy consumption.
What impact might Brexit have on the industry?
In our globalised economy, there is a lot of to and from in manufacturing. Some components are produced in one country and then sent to another for assembly. If transporting materials and goods across borders slows down or becomes problematic, then manufacturers may need to reorganise their operations so that products can be completed locally. Smart technologies can also help overcome this challenge as they transform the flexibility, efficiency and personnel requirements of production lines. However, investment will likely depend on the economy.
How are you approaching the engineering skills shortage?
Sadly, there is a still a huge gap between the demand for skills among UK companies and the numbers of young people studying STEM subjects in schools, colleges and universities. We are working with organisations, such as the Royal Academy of Engineering and the Women’s Engineering Society, to promote our field and whenever we have a chance we meet with youngsters at school or university to explain what we do. Mostly, they are very intrigued because you get to work in a team, solve problems and there is a lot of variety. Sometimes you are behind a desk but then you meet regularly with clients to discuss projects and spend time with the team on site. The work is also rewarding because you get to genuinely help customers and see the results a few months down the line, not years and years ahead.
What makes VINCI Energies UK & RoI such a great place to work?
In our business model, the company is divided into 27 business units in the UK and ROI, which are empowered to be flexible, agile and act with an entrepreneurial mindset. They are all human sized communities, which means our people feel well within their business units.. Everyone has a say and the chance to shine as they share the responsibility to drive the business forward together with their management team. When you excel, you can progress to become a manager, then a director or CEO. We have many examples of apprentices who have become business unit managers and graduates who have become project managers within two years. There are also lots of opportunities to move sideways between different parts of the business to develop new expertise. But the most exciting thing is the importance of our work, delivering the promises of the digital and energy revolutions to create a better connected and greener future for us all.
And finally, what are you doing to limit your environmental impact in 2021?
The purpose of our work is to increase our customers’ efficiency, reduce their energy consumption and facilitate the use of renewable energy but we are also taking some concrete actions to reduce our own carbon footprint in 2021. By the end of this year, we plan to have reduced our carbon footprint by almost 10% by changing our energy contracts to require renewable sources only and a further 5% by switching our car fleet to EVs. Eventually, we plan to have reduced carbon emissions 25% by 2025, 40% by 2030 and become carbon neutral by 2050. The VINCI Group has also changed its Innovation Prize to an Environmental Prize, rewarding projects from within VINCI businesses that support decarbonisation. This will only encourage environmental thinking throughout the organisation and demonstrates the extreme importance we place on caring for our planet. With all this said, I feel 2021 is going to be an exciting year for us.
