UK Manufacturing Payment Practices: A Mixed Bag in 2021

The Numbers

• Companies analysed: 210
• Average PaymentCheck Score: 50.3/100
• UK average: 50.0/100 (Manufacturing sector slightly above average)
• Top score: 100/100 (LUXFER HOLDINGS PLC)
• Bottom score: 2.5/100 (ADARE INTERNATIONAL LIMITED)
• Highest regional average: London (57.8/100)
• Lowest regional average (of regions with more than 2 companies analysed): South East (52.1/100)

What Stands Out

While the manufacturing sector edges out the UK average in payment performance, the incredibly wide range between the best and worst payers – a chasm of 97.5 points – indicates a real problem with payment consistency. Some massive companies appear to be struggling with payments, and it's a situation that could put their suppliers at risk.

Best Payers

1. LUXFER HOLDINGS PLC - 100/100
2. LIBERTY PRESSING SOLUTIONS (COVENTRY) LIMITED - 98.1/100
3. AKER OFFSHORE PARTNER LIMITED - 94/100
4. LINDE MATERIAL HANDLING (UK) LIMITED - 93.6/100
5. STANNAH LIFT SERVICES LIMITED - 88.43/100

Worst Payers

1. ADARE INTERNATIONAL LIMITED - 2.5/100
2. TATA STEEL UK LIMITED - 8.33/100
3. AMETEK AIRTECHNOLOGY GROUP LIMITED - 15.9/100
4. IG DESIGN GROUP UK LIMITED - 19.8/100
5. FORGED SOLUTIONS GROUP LIMITED - 20.25/100

Regional Patterns

London leads the pack with an average of 57.8, but the South East's score of 52.1, with a sample size of 40 companies, reveals surprisingly mediocre performance compared to London and the North West (56.9) in what is often considered a more affluent area. The small sample size for Northern Ireland (55.0) and the North East (53.8) does make it hard to draw any meaningful insights for these regions.

Calculate the potential impact of late payments using a late payment calculator.

Despite the sector's slightly above-average score of 50.3, the presence of TATA STEEL UK LIMITED so deep in the bottom five (8.33) highlights that size isn't necessarily indicative of good payment practices.