INDUSTRY experts will today tell North-East manufacturers how they can fight back against low-cost overseas competitors.

Hundreds of business people are expected to attend a conference at The Sage, in Gateshead, to learn about new industry research to help their firms succeed on a global market.

The event, called Manufacturing - Finding the Right Strategy, features guest speakers from Nissan, Black and Decker and regional development agency One NorthEast.

Manufacturing is a cornerstone of the regional economy, employing 169,000 people in the North-East and generating £2.6bn in wages every year.

More than 200 delegates from dozens of firms from the region have signed up to attend the event.

It has been arranged by the University of Sunderland's Institute for Automotive and Manufacturing Advanced Practice on behalf of the North East Productivity Alliance (Nepa).

Professor John MacIntyre, head of automotive technology at the university, will be welcoming the delegates.

He said: "This important event will set out a vision for a new manufacturing future in our region.

"Delegates will see some of the new ideas being developed through research and development with industry, which will help our companies to be at the top of the value chain in years to come."

The four speakers at the conference, which starts at 9.30am, all carried out detailed research as part of Nepa's Engineering Fellows project.

The project aims to develop a body of knowledge for regional businesses to use to improve their practices and compete on a global stage.

Mark Rutherford, One NorthEast head of business productivity, said: "Nepa has successfully worked in more than 250 companies since its launch in 2002, helping firms significantly boost their productivity and save millions of pounds.

"The Nepa projects have trained more than 7,000 engineering and manufacturing staff in new skills."