As part of their mission to advance research and innovation in advanced materials in the UK, the Henry Royce Institute has compiled a new Materials Map that reveals the scale of the contribution of the Advanced Materials sector to regional economies across the UK.
The map shows hotspots of activity within different sector-specific clusters across the UK, with all regions playing host to clusters of innovative companies. This emphasises that the strength of the UK's advanced materials sector is greatly bolstered by regional ecosystems that provide access to infrastructure, investment, and networks.
Key findings include that:
- The materials sector as a whole contributes £49bn GVA to the UK economy and directly employs more than 635,000 people;
- The sector is well distributed, with the highest contributor to GVA, the South-East at £8.7bn, having just 18% of the total;
- The North-West has the second highest GVA at £7.2bn and the highest number of innovative businesses. Within the North-West, Manchester hosts the most companies, with nearby Trafford close behind;
- The materials sector provides a GVA of £4.3bn to Yorkshire and the Humber, with Sheffield supporting the most business in the region, just edging out Leeds; and
- Scotland has an outsized contribution to emerging space technologies within its £4bn materials sector, concentrated in Aberdeen, Glasgow, and Edinburgh.
“The UK’s materials strength lies in its clusters, where SMEs and mid-sized companies co-locate around sector-specific specialisms like aerospace, defence, automotive and life sciences, turning regional industrial strengths and identities into national competitive advantage.” - Allan Cook CBE
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