About us
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Professional, personable, trustworthy
Good value service
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Hard working, focused
Stirling Media
Stirling Media Ltd. is a media and events agency that specialises in work for the manufacturing and engineering sectors. It was founded by Will Stirling in 2013.
Will is a writer and publisher, event curator and producer, moderator, PR professional and media all-rounder with 25 years’ experience in journalism and publishing and 16 years’ experience in manufacturing journalism, event and media production, book publishing and public relations.
We work regularly with partners including Matt Chilton at Zenoot.com, The Bessemer Society, the ERA Foundation and several new and long term clients, including industrial companies, professional services and tech companies.
Background
2000-2003 Journalist at IPC Media. IBI Magazine, Motor Boat and Yachting and Yachting Monthly. Plus freelance work.
2003-2006 Started a video production company: Fineline Films, training and promotional films for the superyacht industry.
2006-2009 EuroWeek, part of Euromoney plc. Journalist and sub-editor. Responsible for production of all supplements and special reports
2009 – 2013 Editor and managing editor, The Manufacturer
2013 – 2025 Stirling Media Ltd. Writer, publisher and events producer.
I joined The Manufacturer magazine in December 2008 and was editor and managing editor for five years. I supported the company’s busy event programme. During this time I was non-executive director of a colourants and tinting systems manufacturer, KREATE, from 2003 until it was sold in 2017.
I left The Manufacturer in 2013 to produce conferences and events and write copy for companies, professional services, and magazines.
My first conference – Meet the Mittelstand hoisted at JCB in 2014 – secured 220 delegates and 200 pages of media and social media citations for a PR budget of £500. The conference was reported on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, BBC West Midlands, the Financial Times and Daily Mail, among other media and social media.
I have produced 11 large conferences, and multiple business symposia, technology demonstrations, roundtables, business dinners, factory tours and events nationwide. Clients of these events include:
ABB, ARBURG, Hitachi Consulting, Infor, igus, JCB, Matta, Microsoft, PTC, the German British Forum, the ERA Foundation and the Bessemer Society.
Industrio
Co-founded and co-managed a content agency, Industrio, for six years until 2024. Content was manufacturing-focused. Clients included Autodesk, KUKA, The Access Group and LYNQ.
Launch of Future of Work
In 2024 with support from the ERA Foundation, Stirling Media and Fidelity Marketing produced four conferences in October, launch events of the Future of Work campaign.
“Future of Work: Advanced Manufacturing” allows young employees of manufacturing and engineering companies to explain their jobs and careers to an audience of teachers, students, parents and careers advisors. The events are hosted in regions where local businesses and universities participate, showing the careers available and in demand locally.
The talks are filmed and shared with more schools in the region. Work experience and Teacher Encounters can be secured through the events.
Future of Work: West of England was produced at the Bristol and Bath Science Park in October 2025. 294 people attended, 250 students and teachers from 13 local secondary schools, 25 speakers and tours of the nearby NCC Catapult centre and IAAPs Advanced Propulsion Centre.
This work is ongoing as we seek more funding to continue the campaign.
Some of our work
| 2013-2015 | Conferences: Meet the Mittelstand | Showing British companies features of Germany’s Mittelstand companies, and Germany’s approach to investing in and growing family-owned manufacturing companies into world famous brands. Venues: JCB Visitor Centre, Manchester United Football Club, Liverpool Ceremonial Hall |
| 2016 | Conference: Britain’s Future in Europe | Co-produced with OMFIF and the German British Forum. c. 300 business and VIP guests heard debates for and against Britain’s membership of the European Union. Dr Wolfgang Schäuble, Germany’s former Minister of Finance, was the keynote speaker. |
| 2017 | Book: 80 Years of Manufacturing at Lostock | 60-page commemorative book celebrating 80 years of the defence company MBDA, since its foundation as the de Havilland variable pitch propeller factory in 1937 |
| 2015-2022 | The UK Manufacturing Review (later the Manufacturing Outlook) | Annual 220-page summary, review and forecast of manufacturing sectors, technologies and regions in the United Kingdom. Early editions covered comparator countries and the 15 EPSRC Centres for Innovative Manufacturing |
| 2018-2023 | Organiser and moderator of: – Technology demonstrations – Roundtables – Factory tours – Sponsored dinners | Clients include: ABB, Hitachi Consulting, Infor, igus, JCB, Matta, Microsoft, PTC, Cranfield University, The German British Forum, The ERA Foundation |
| 2021 | Customer event: Low-Cost Automation for igus | 50 delegates including c. 40 target customers. Talks, Q&A, robot demonstrations. Hosted at Cranfield University |
| 2022 | The UK Manufacturing Outlook 2022 | Last edition of this series, for now. Sponsors: EPSRC, Innovate UK, UKTI, AMRC (Catapult centre), Infor, JCB |
2024
| Future of Work: Advanced Manufacturing www.futureofworkuk.com/ | Four conferences delivered by young employees for teachers, students and careers advisors. Hosted at Renishaw, University of Warwick, The JCB Academy and Eastern Education Group, Bury St. Edmunds |
| 2025 – July | Bessemer Showcase “National Security in a New World Order” | How investment, from across the UK investor spectrum, must help UK hard-tech and high-tech companies to grow for domestic resilience in a changing world. c. 300 delegates, 20 exhibition stands, plenary sessions, break outs. |
| 2025 – October | Future of Work: West of England
| 294 attendees, 250 students and teachers, 26 speakers from 12 companies and universities, tours of NCC and IAAPs centres.
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| 2025 – November | Media briefing Matta | Brought 12 trade media editors and writers to AI company Matta’s HQ to see demonstrations of its ‘factory sentience’ technology. Most of the media published stories. |
Skills and competencies
Will is a media all-rounder who can write, edit, publish, curate and produce events, moderate conferences, interview, author reports, film and edit video, use InDesign, host and publish webinars and social media.
I am experienced in fundraising for events and media projects.
See examples of my work in the ‘What we do’ section.
An independent business since 2013
Stirling Media Ltd. was launched in November 2013 and has traded profitably without interruption since.
Why work with Stirling Media?
Expertise in manufacturing subjects as a writer, editor, convenor and networker. I have built a substantial network across these industries. I have reported on and visited many factories and speak to manufacturing leaders and professionals regularly.
>1,616 connections
4,946 followers.
I admit my activity on X / Twitter has slipped.
Professional, personable, trustworthy
Good value service
Small, nimble and expert team
Hard working, focused
>1,616 connections
4,946 followers.
I admit my activity on X / Twitter has slipped.