Standard business broadband was designed for office use. Email, web browsing, video calls. It works well enough for most of that. On a factory floor in 2026, it is increasingly not enough.
The shift to cloud-based systems, VoIP telephony and remote monitoring has changed what manufacturing businesses need from their internet connection. Broadband was not built for it. Leased lines were.
What a Leased Line Is
A leased line is a dedicated, uncontended connection between your premises and the internet. Unlike broadband, which is shared between every business and home in your area, a leased line is yours alone. The speed you pay for is the speed you get, at nine in the morning and at four in the afternoon.
Leased lines are symmetrical, meaning upload and download speeds are equal. On standard broadband, upload is typically a fraction of download speed. For businesses sending large files, backing up to the cloud, or running video conferencing at scale, that asymmetry causes problems.
Why It Matters on the Factory Floor
Three changes in manufacturing technology have made broadband a liability rather than an acceptable compromise.
The first is cloud-based ERP and production management systems. When your stock control, production scheduling and procurement all run through a browser, a slow or unreliable connection stops the line. Literally.
The second is VoIP telephony. Traditional phone lines are being retired. Businesses moving to hosted phone systems need a connection that can handle voice calls reliably without drop-outs. Broadband contention causes exactly that problem at peak times.
The third is remote monitoring and IoT. Sensors on machinery, remote access for engineers, CCTV systems feeding to off-site storage – all of these create constant upstream data traffic that broadband upload speeds cannot sustain reliably.
What It Costs
Leased line pricing has fallen considerably over the past five years. A 100Mbps leased line to a North West business premises now typically costs between £300 and £600 per month depending on location and contract length. Gigabit connections are available in most urban and industrial areas of the region at higher price points.
Compared to the cost of downtime, the premium over broadband is modest. One hour of production disruption costs most manufacturers more than a month’s leased line rental.
Blowfish Technology works with the UK’s leading connectivity providers to source and manage leased line installations for North West businesses. If your current connection is limiting your operation, get in touch and we will assess what is available at your site.
The Blowfish Technology team. Managed IT, cloud services, software development and connectivity for North West businesses since 1999.