A SUCCESSFUL manufacturer gave tips on beating the recession when he addressed a local business meeting. Mr Ken Lewis, of Dutton Engineering in Bedfordshire, was a guest of Bolton and Bury Chamber's Business Link and the Engineering Employers' Federation at their first INTO 2000 seminar. He said his metal fabrication company had more than doubled its sales and achieved remarkable production improvements by adopting an innovative approach to work responsibilities and a ruthless attitude to overheads.

The way forward, he said, was to "eliminate waste and fire fighting by working smart, not hard and having fun at work."

There was continuous improvement, cultural change and team working.

Shop floor operatives are multi-skilled and work in self-managed cells which fix their own salaries, go out and win orders and act as cost accountants and production engineers.

Mr Mark Allanson, Director of Business Link, said: "This was the first in our INTO 2000 series of seminars which will give 'real' examples of how others are beating the recession and how to get in good shape for recovery.

"At Business Link we recognise the difficulties Bolton and Bury's businesses are experiencing and we are poised to help with realistic advice to match the tough market conditions."

Details of other seminars in the INTO 2000 series are available from Chantelle Brogden at Business Link on 0845 6016010.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.