MACHINERY
Skill shortage pushing
out lead times at Stuga
Stuga Machinery manufactures
automatic sawing and
machining centres for uPVC
window and door fabricators
but the high levels of activity
in the window industry have
pushed Stuga deliveries back to
early 2015.
A big problem for machinery
manufacturers is acquiring skills
followed by the training lead
time before extra capacity can be
created. Stuga has been recruiting
and training skilled staff, as well as
taking on apprentices, for the last
18 months but each trainee needs
training time from the established
workforce, which in turn can hold
them back.
Based in Great Yarmouth, there
is a big engineering resource
created by shipping, gas and oil
but this means that all industries
are competing with each another
for the same pool of people.
Inevitably, this drives up wages
and also costs for everyone. Stuga
has a tight-knit unit of people and
once the company finds the right
person, they don’t tend to leave as
it is a nice environment to work in
compared with some of the bigger
industries.
Component machining resource
is another problem area in which
Stuga has found it necessary
to purchase more automated
machinery for its own production
- and then find the staff to operate
the new machines. Again, it is
necessary to recruit locally from
companies that are actually also
suppliers.
As the orders keep mounting,
the owners Stuga always need to
consider when the next potential
downturn could come; so too
much capacity is not socially
good because people may then
need to be laid off quickly as
the work drops off. This leads to
extended lead times that prove
uncomfortable for Stuga and its
customers. But innovative ways to
improve production techniques
and product design are also
helping.
Fortunately for Stuga, many
customers are prepared to wait for
its products as they like the way
the company works, how easy the
machines are to maintain and how
excellent the back-up is. The Stuga
Service Center based in Great
Yarmouth, is able to give the top
class back-up essential for a uPVC
window and door fabricator.
www.stuga.co.uk
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To read more, visit www.clearview-uk.com
JUL 2014
103