Professional Engineering

The British automotive sector received a much-needed boost today, with the announcement of three multi million pound investments in car and engine production facilities.

Nissan confirmed that it would produce its new electric car, the Leaf, at its plant in Sunderland. The North East factory will make up to 50,000 of the new vehicles each year, along with 60,000 batteries, creating more than 550 jobs.

Andy Palmer, Nissan’s senior vice president responsible for global electric vehicle strategy, said that the five-seater hatchback would offer the same space and performance of a similar car in its class – minus the tailpipe emissions.

Meanwhile motorsport firm McLaren outlined plans to build a new production centre at its existing Woking base to produce high-performance road cars. The facility, which is currently under construction, will open in 2011 and will produce the new MP4-12C sports car in volumes of around 1,000 a year. The car is based on a one-piece carbon-fibre composite chassis called a monocell, which McLaren said was lightweight while offering exceptional strength.

McLaren executive chairman Ron Dennis said the new production centre would create around 300 highly skilled jobs, providing a significant boost to the UK high-tech manufacturing base. “There is still a real passion for engineering and innovation in the UK,” he said. 

There was also good news from Ford, which announced plans to invest £1.5 billion to create a new generation of environmentally-friendly engines. The decision came after the government confirmed it would provide Ford with £380 million in loan guarantees through its Automotive Assistance Programme. The investment will safeguard almost 3,000 jobs at its manufacturing plants in Dagenham, Southampton and Bridgend in south Wales, as well as its research and development centre at Dunton in Essex.

Ford of Britain chairman, Joe Greenwell, said: “Our customers will benefit from this extensive investment and so too will the 100,000 people in the UK whose jobs are directly or indirectly dependent on Ford. The loan also encourages the growth of high-technology, CO2-reducing research and development in the country.”