SMS – Smart Made Simple Ends Their Financial Year Positively

September 30th marks the financial year end for SMS and as they close their books, they do so with a strong outlook

Despite many challenging factors that the electronics manufacturing industry is facing in the U.K. at present, SMS – Smart Made Simple, is pleased to report that it has increased its turnover by 30% in the last 12 months.

Challenges such as Brexit, fluctuating exchange rates and extended lead-time pressures are present within the electronic manufacturing industry in the U.K. today.  These economic, political and technological trials were predicted to shake the U.K. manufacturing industry, but in spite of these factors, SMS has witnessed growth.

CraigTaylorCraig Taylor, Chief Financial Officer, SMS, states; “we have outperformed 2016. As we look at 2017, turnover is up 30%, orders are up 20% and our development centre alone has increased by over 20%.

In June 2017, we invested heavily in new technology to support our customer’s developmental needs.  We purchased a new Mycronic MY600 Jet Printer and the Mycronic MY200SX Placement for state-of-the-art development.  Through these investments, we have been able to address and close the gap between technology advancements and our capability.

The most exciting consequence of our investment, however, is one that the management within SMS did not predict.  We purchased the equipment to support our current customers, who have increased their demand to develop with speed and precision.  We didn’t however, forecast the volume of new opportunities that this investment would open SMS up to.

The request for rapid New Product Introduction (NPI) with varying capacity requirements has enlarged our order book considerably. We are delighted to be seen as the electronics manufacturing service provider (EMS) who can service this niche market in the U.K.  The fluctuation spikes and variances in the design layout mean that only an experienced EMS provider, who is flexible enough to be able to adapt their operating system, can cope with the small batch size orders, which are highly complex in nature.

This is not a build-to-print business, it is a specialist service that we offer.  It requires high-end, cutting-edge technology and an investment into training and developing people.  Our technology and our team need to be able to demand-plan and fulfil orders as per our customer’s schedule, which is often driven by their customers’ orders.  This is why we help our original equipment maker (OEM) customers to design for manufacture (DFM), design for test (DFT), design for cost (DFC) and design for commercialisation, to speed up the process for them, as innovation has increased the request for speed.

As we look towards the next financial year, we have set our target growth rate and the indicators signpost to growth that’s above the national average.  Anticipated growth is predicted to be driven by a combination of increased demand from customers, diversification and entry into new markets, both domestically and overseas.  Education and training also remain a key area of investment for SMS as part of our commitment to helping the next generation prosper.”