Productivity, Machinery and Skills: Clothing Manufacture in Britain and Germany

This study compares samples of matched plants in Britain and Germany engaged in the manufacture of women's outerwear; it follows earlier matched plant studies, also published in the National Institute Economic Review, which examined matched plants in metalworking and furniture manufacture in these two countries. German clothing manufacturers specialise in high-fashion items produced in great variety of which a high proportion is exported at high unit prices; the typical British manufacturer concentrates on more standardised items produced in long runs and is consequently more vulnerable to competition from lower-cost producers in developing countries. The study examines the contribution of machinery, new technology and skills to differ ences in clothing productivity in the two countries. A final section discusses future trends in the industry in the light of the 1992 proposals for a Single European Market.