From Kenwood to IBM: from Innovation to Offshoring
The Spring Arts & Heritage Centre, Old Town Hall, 56 East Street, Havant, Hampshire, PO9 1BS
For more than forty years, Havant supported a remarkable concentration of technological skill. From Kenwood’s precision engineering in the late 1960s to IBM’s global computing operations in the early 2000s, thousands of people learned trades locally - electronics, tooling, assembly, testing, software and systems integration - shaping both careers and community identity. This talk follows that journey through one working life, tracing how globalisation, automation and offshoring transformed Havant’s employment landscape.
As companies such as Kenwood and Lewmar moved production to China and were later absorbed by overseas owners, skilled manufacturing was rapidly replaced by logistics and warehousing. IBM’s Havant operations, which had grown strongly through the 1970s, were later swept into the wider restructuring of the IBM World Trade Corporation. The need to harmonise commercial accounting across regions, combined with continuous reskilling for new technologies and the shift of manufacturing to lower‑cost IBM countries, steadily moved work away from the borough.
At the same time, commuting patterns changed dramatically. Havant evolved from a town where most people lived and worked locally into a commuter borough, while today’s rise of online retail and gig‑economy delivery risks further devaluing employment prospects.
The talk asks what can be learned from this history and argues that the generation who built Havant’s industrial heritage must work with the next to rebuild.
Timings
- Saturday 19 September:
- 1900
Location & directions
The Spring Arts & Heritage Centre, Old Town Hall, 56 East Street, Havant, Hampshire, PO9 1BS
- Directions:
- 700 Bus from Portsmouth or Chichester. Alight at The Spring Arts Centre stop.
- Contact on day:
- Bob Comlay
- Telephone number:
- +442392472700
Booking information
- Pre-booking requirement:
- Pre-booking required
- Booking conditions:
- Please book via the Booking Office at The Spring Arts and Heritage Centre, East Street Havant, in person, by phone or email
- Booking contact name:
- Neil Spurgeon
- Booking telephone number:
- +442392472700
- Booking email:
- [email protected]
- Booking website:
- https://www.thespring.co.uk
- Booking opens:
- 01 Sep 2026 12:00 AM
- Booking closes:
- 19 Sep 2026 12:00 AM
Accessibility details
The talk is on the first floor but a stair lift is available on request from the Reception Desk upon arrival
Additional information
- Max number of people:
- 50
- Estimated duration:
- 1 hour(s)
