EU investment supports SMEs

A new £500,000 investment from the European Union (EU) is to help 65 design and manufacturing firms to generate new business through digital engineering technologies.

Sunderland University has secured the contribution from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) 2007-13 to extend Digital Factory, the training and technology transfer project delivered by the Institute for Automotive and Manufacturing Advanced Practice (AMAP).

The project is assisting design, engineering and manufacturing firms with innovative processes and facilities and equipment to increase productivity and win new business.

‘The team at AMAP allows companies access to advanced software applications to accelerate the design stages of their work,’ said Digital Factory project leader, Alan Stafford. ‘This increases their capabilities and enables them to exploit new business opportunities.

‘Investment in these types of technologies gives smaller companies a greater chance to succeed and grow. We can give them access to expensive software technologies used by larger firms, which SMEs need to break into new markets, gain customers and move up into more lucrative areas of the supply chain.’