Manufacturer calls for a fair playing field in today’s Budget

Jaz Khunkun (left) with Glenn Aston

As the Chancellor prepares to deliver her Budget later today, UK manufacturers find themselves in a familiar position — hopeful, yet cautious. The sector has heard promises of a renaissance before, but what it says it needs now is policy that matches the ambition of companies still investing, innovating, and exporting despite global volatility.

Few firms embody this resilience and forward momentum better than Birmingham-based Rowan Precision, a CNC machining specialist which is celebrating 40 years in business. Recently acquired in full by OSYS Rowan Ltd, the company is entering a new chapter under the stewardship of CFO Glenn Aston and CCO Jaz Khunkun — both long-time advocates for a strong, modern, globally competitive British manufacturing base.

From the boardroom in Birmingham, Rowan Precision’s leadership is clear — this Budget will be a litmus test of whether the Government truly understands what manufacturers need to thrive. Mr Aston said: “Manufacturers can adapt to almost anything except uncertainty. We invest in machines that have working lives of a decade or more. You can’t plan that kind of capital cycle if the tax environment shifts every 12 months.”

Mr Aston points to previous periods where capital allowances, R&D tax credits, and digital-adoption incentives have been revised, redefined, or scrapped altogether — each change forcing boardrooms to hit pause, reassess, and often re-sequence investments. Mr Aston added: “For precision engineering firms like ours, stability is crucial. Itis the foundation of productivity — if the Chancellor wants manufacturers to invest, then give us a policy framework that lasts longer than the machine-tool warranty.”

Rowan Precision is renowned for its advanced machining capability — sliding-head 13-axis CNC turning, multi-axis fixed-head mill-turn centres, and five-axis machining cells capable of delivering complex geometries in a single operation — but keeping that capability world-class requires relentless investment. Mr Khunkun said: “Advanced manufacturing is literally what we do every day. Customers in aerospace, defence and high-performance engineering demand tolerances that leave no room for error. If the UK wants to lead in these sectors, Government policy must support the adoption of high-precision technology, automation and digital quality systems.”

Critical lever
Mr Khunkun, a long-time champion of manufacturing competitiveness, argues that the Budget is a critical lever — not just for local manufacturing, but for the entire national supply chain. He added: “Give companies confidence to invest in robotics, metrology, digital twins, multi-axis machining — the capabilities that keep work in Britain rather than seeing it migrate overseas. If we want to strengthen the UK’s industrial backbone, we must reward ambition.”

While the industry celebrates innovation, no amount of cutting-edge equipment can fully offset the reality of cost inflation. Energy, labour and raw materials remain stubbornly high — and brutally unforgiving for precision manufacturers operating on tight margins. Mr Aston continued: “We are not asking for hand-outs. But energy pricing for industrial users has to be competitive with European peers, or we will always be running uphill. The same goes for employer taxes. The Budget needs to recognise that manufacturing is capital-intensive and strategically important.” He added that manufacturers want to invest, expand, and hire — “though we can only do that if the economics make sense.”

Mr Khunkun is equally direct about the need for the Budget to acknowledge the UK’s regional manufacturing clusters — particularly in the Midlands. He said: “The Midlands built Britain’s manufacturing’s reputation. Companies like ours keep that heritage alive. But we shouldn’t have to fight harder than other regions just to remain competitive.”

He calls for targeted investment in skills, apprenticeships, and engineering careers, alongside support for export-focused SMEs: “If the Chancellor wants growth, then back the regions where manufacturing excellence already exists. We just need the investment to scale.”

After being acquired last year by OSYS Rowan, the company enters its fifth decade with renewed ambition. It has fortified the company’s long-term growth plans and injected new strategic focus. But both Aston and Khunkun emphasise that the future of UK manufacturing cannot rely solely on company level commitment.

Mr Aston concluded: “This Budget is an opportunity for the UK Government to demonstrate that it sees manufacturing as part of Britain’s future, not its past. Give us a stable foundation, reward investment, support skills, and make energy competitive — and UK manufacturers will do the rest.”