On 14 September 2023, Shield Works Precision Manufacturing received what was, at that point, the most senior diplomatic visit in the company’s history.

We had the honour of welcoming Geraldine McCafferty, Deputy Head of Mission at the British Embassy Beijing, and Sarah Mann, newly appointed Consul-General in Guangzhou, to our facility in Zhuhai — along with Lyndon Radnedge, Political Consul, and Bany Liu, Research and Programme Officer.

It was a short but genuinely enjoyable tour, and a productive meeting that reinforced something I have believed for a long time: when British businesses operating in China are doing things the right way, the British government wants to know about it, support it, and showcase it.

Why This Visit Mattered

Shield Works is not a household name in the UK. It does not have a marketing budget to match the multinationals. What it has is a clear, principled model: 100% British-owned OEM manufacturing in South China, with a relentless focus on IP protection, precision assembly, and quality control that British and international clients can genuinely trust.

That model is worth knowing about. And having the Deputy Head of Mission and the Consul-General come through our doors — seeing the facility, meeting the team, understanding what we have built — is exactly the kind of recognition that validates years of hard work.

For Nick Cunningham, who founded C2W Group in 2005 and launched Shield Works in 2019, and for the entire Shield Works and C2W team, this visit was a proud moment. I was delighted to be part of it.

The Bigger Picture

The UK-China business relationship is complex and often mischaracterised. What visits like this demonstrate is that there are British companies operating in China with integrity, with purpose, and with genuine value to offer — both to their clients and to the bilateral relationship itself.

Shield Works is one of those companies. And it was a privilege to have that recognised at the most senior diplomatic level.

We look forward to welcoming Consul-General Sarah Mann and her team back again — by which point the second floor construction will be well and truly complete.

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Mark Clayton FCMA CGMA CPA KOR — Group CFO, C2W Group | Chairman, British Chamber of Commerce South China