The power of process

This jewel in the crown of British industry is also a driving force in the Tees Valley economy.

There can be no doubting the power of the Tees Valley's process sector.

Representing 30% of the North-east's industrial base it generates £10bn of sales.

And on Teesside it is of even greater significance, contributing 60% of the local economy's GDP.

Member companies of NEPIC - the North East Process Industry Cluster - employ abut 40,000 people directly and impacting indirectly on the income of a further 280,000.

The sector is also an enviable blend of old and new - traditional chemical production and engineering combined with state-of-the-art technology, research and  energy saving industries.

Biofuels for example, a newcomer to the process stable, is forecast to be worth £1bn to the North-east over the next 20 years.

Skills Challenges

But the sector faces serious skills challenges. Without intervention, it is expected to be short of 20,000 workers by 2014.

The £10m National Skills Academy for the Process Industries, now up and running at Teesside University, aims to deliver thousands of extra NVQ qualifications and train increasing numbers of apprentices.

Sector's Significance

The chemical process industry is now Britain's only net manufacturing export sector, according to Government statistics.

And for Tees Valley the figures speak for themselves when it comes to the sector's significance.

» 70% of Teesport trade is in goods from the process sector.

» More than 500 companies are engaged in the process industries across the North-east, employing 34,000 people directly and impacting indirectly on the incomes of a further 280,000.

» Chemicals account for 11% of the value added by all UK manufacturing.

» The industry spends nearly £2bn annually on new capital investment.

Teesside's Industrial Scene

Tees Valley's process sector was one dominated by ICI - which at its peak employed more than 30,000 staff. It now employs less than 100 locally.

But new names have made their home on Teesside's industrial scene, bringing with them new investment.

Hundreds of millions of pounds are being pumped into the process sector. And NEPIC says its member companies are currently investing a further £7bn into the region by 2015.

The region's ambition to become a world-class centre for innovation in the processing sector has been cemented further with the merger of two leading organisations.

The Centre for Process Innovation (CPI) at Wilton and Newcastle's Centre of Excellence for Nano, Micro and Photonic Systems (Cenamps) have joined forces to drive industry-led development in the sector.