A six-month survey of more than 200 UK automotive sector firms has identified potentially damaging shortages of staff.

The businesses surveyed, including 50 in the North-East, employ more than 17,000 staff.

They identified shortages in engineering and manufacturing disciplines, and, in particular, multi-skilled maintenance technicians.

The research was carried out by the Automotive Sector Strategic Alliance (Assa) and the Northern Economic Research Unit (Neru).

The Assa report found major skills gaps in the areas of applied IT and problem solving, engineering/manufacturing and a lack of knowledge of recognised and respected work practices used by Japanese firms.

But most notable was the growing shortage of multi-skilled technicians who can maintain and offer technical support so that mechanical faults and assembly down-time are kept to a minimum.

Paul Gough, head of Assa's research team, said: "This is the most far-reaching survey into skills carried out for the automotive industry to date. It provides real evidence for us to direct training effectively and lobby for Government support for specific areas of need.

"Although skills shortages were a key concern for the majority of those surveyed, there were encouraging figures on the current and predicted levels of investment into training.

"The largest barrier to training was not the cost of courses, but the limited time staff could spend away from the workplace to train.

"With advancements in technology, and product diversification becoming increasingly important to firms, our research revealed that the emphasis on staff development will be even greater over the next few years."

Businesses had clear views on the nature of the training they wanted to receive, with the majority seeking industry-driven support rather than academic training provision.

Mr Gough said: "Many firms wanted external training assistance from experts who had experience of the automotive and high-volume manufacturing sectors."

Experts at Assa have made recommendations based on the findings, which it hopes will fuel debate in the industry, and lead to more direct Government action on the skills issue.

"Part of the problem which may be leading to a skills shortage is the perceived image of the manufacturing sector," said Mr Gough.

"Graduates in particular, have this idea that it is a grimy, manual job, when in reality it is a highly sophisticated process that involves the very latest in technology - we need to get this message across.