Recently, we wrote a piece about the UK’s Motorsport Valley, the large proportion of F1 teams located in the UK and their distribution around the heart of England. That is not merely half the story when it comes to F1 in the UK. In this article we will discuss the vast supply chain that feeds the F1 machine.
We will look into the number of suppliers in the entire supply chain and also the industry’s vast contribution to the UK economy and the number of people it employs. It turns out that F1 is a huge contributor to the UK economy, not only in monetary terms but also vital knowledge that can be repurposed towards other industries.
How many F1 suppliers are there in the UK and where are they located?
From our own, in depth research, we conclude that there are in the region 1050 suppliers to F1 in the UK. These include an eclectic mix of companies - mainly centered around engineering but also in services like PR and marketing.
The map below shows their distribution around the country. As you can see, the highest contribution is in and around the motorsport valley but F1’s reach does stretch to each corner of the country with suppliers in Scotland and Wales too.
The value to the UK economy
If you add up the amount of revenue these companies generate it would be 10s of billions of pounds. The revenue that F1 specifically contributes to the UK economy, will likely be in the region of £6-£8 Billion. (source: LSE)
Don’t forget that the technology they develop for F1 is likely what drives their businesses into other industries - also supplying into the likes of hi-tec aerospace and defence as well.
If a small engineering firm can demonstrate that it can supply successfully into F1, then it can most definitely supply into a similar, hi-tec cutting edge industry - the whole process fuels the growth of engineering excellence in the UK.
Jobs!
An industry that contributes so much to the UK economy is no doubt going to contribute a huge amount in terms of jobs as well. According to The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, 41,000 people are employed in the F1 supply chain alone. This number also seems entirely plausible when we extrapolate out the information we have researched from the number of the suppliers in the UK.
These jobs are in a huge variety of positions, from engineering to accounting and logistics to marketing. The engineering world that is fueling keeping F1 at the cutting edge in the UK is well and truly thriving!
To find jobs in F1 and wider motorsport and engineering please be sure to check out our jobs section here on Fluid Jobs!
