Engineering news
Aston Martin has announced £200 million of investments in the UK, with plans to build its second manufacturing facility at St Athan in Glamorgan, Wales, which will become the sole production facility for its DBX crossover vehicle.
The company also confirmed that production of next-generation sports cars would be focused at its headquarters and manufacturing centre in Gaydon, Warwickshire. Production of the recently announced all-electric RapidE is also to be located at Gaydon, starting in 2018.
It is expected that up to 1,000 new jobs will be created across St Athan and Gaydon between now and 2020. Across the supply chain and local businesses, a further 3,000 jobs will likely be created as a direct result of these investments.
Dr. Andrew Palmer, CEO of Aston Martin, said: “Through a detailed evaluation of over 20 potential global locations for this new manufacturing facility, we were consistently impressed with the focus on quality, cost and speed from the Welsh Government team. As a great British company, we look forward to St Athan joining Gaydon as our second centre of hand-crafted manufacturing excellence.”
First Minister of Wales, Carwyn Jones said: “We have been working closely with Aston Martin for almost two years in the face of fierce competition from other potential sites across the world. Our success today is testament to the reputation, dedication and skills of the Welsh workforce, all qualities that are synonymous with such a luxury, hand-crafted brand as Aston Martin."
Occupying some 90 acres, the new Aston Martin facility at St Athan will re-purpose some of the facilities currently in use at the site by the Ministry of Defence. Centered on the transformation of the three existing ‘super-hangers’ at MOD St Athan, construction work is planned to commence in 2017 with full vehicle production commencing in 2020.
The concept crossover vehicle named ‘DBX’ was first shown in early 2015 and confirmed the company’s intention to move into the fast-growing luxury market. With growing demand for these types of vehicles in markets such as China and the United States, it is expected that more than 90% of the production from St Athan will be exported outside of the United Kingdom.
Aston Martin will commence production in the autumn at Gaydon of the new DB11, the replacement for the DB9 and the first car to be launched under the company’s 'Second Century' plan. Over the course of the next five years, the company will both replace and expand its entire sports car portfolio. Starting with DB11, sports car manufacturing will be centered at Gaydon with the facility progressively expanding production to a planned maximum volume of 7,000 sports cars a year by 2020.
Andy Richards, Unite Wales secretary, said that the “landmark investment” was a real coup for Wales and the prestigious brand’s investment was much needed good news for the country’s manufacturing sector and its automotive supply chain. He added: “A lot of credit must go to First Minister Carwyn Jones on delivering this boost for Wales. In addition, the foresight and tenacity shown by business minister Edwina Hart in securing the deal must also be recognised.”