Dont believe everything you read in the business papers...

On the face of it, this story looks like a great case study to use with business students. The last television factory in the UK is closing down in the face of competition from imported televisions and the rapid face of technological change. But wait! Is there a twist in the tale?

The article in the Times describes the proud hsitory of television manufacture in the UK. Some great material to use in there for topics such as product life cycle and production quality.

It goes on to assert that the closure of Sanyo’s small factory in Lowestoft represents the end of the industry in the UK -a “fact” bemoaned by the grandson of the inventor of the humble telly.

But is this claim correct. Don’t Toshiba have a television factory in Plymouth? They certainly do according to the Toshiba website. Maybe the author of the article is making a distinction between manufacture and assmebly? But surely tv manufacture is all about component assembly and testing?

It looks like the demise of television manufacturing in the UK has been announced slightly prematurely.