JLR awards contracts worth £3.5bn to support latest product launch
CONTRACTS worth £3.5bn have been awarded to automotive component suppliers following the launch of the latest vehicle from Jaguar Land Rover.
The latest Land Rover Discovery Sport has rolled off the production line at Halewood, on Merseyside. It has directly created 250 new jobs at the plant but many hundreds are expected to have been secured in the supply chain following the decision to push the vehicle into full time production.
JLR said in a statement following the launch: “The impact of Discovery Sport has been positively felt within the UK supply chain where £3.5bn in contracts have been awarded to 55 suppliers.”
Many of the companies supplying components to JLR have made long-term investments in their production facilities to safeguard supplies.
Ian Harnett, Jaguar Land Rover’s Purchasing Director said: “A strong, competitive supply chain, meeting our rigorous cost and delivery metrics, is fundamental to the sustainable growth of our business. With many more new products in the pipeline, gearing up to supply Jaguar Land Rover is a solid business proposition.”
The decision to begin production of the vehicle has also been followed by a £200m investment into the Halewood plant, although the current Discovery will still continue to be produced at Land Rover main site in Solihull.
The Discovery Sport is also one of 50 new “product actions” pledged by JLR over the next few years. The pledge includes new vehicles and facelifts to current models.
JLR has high hopes for the new Discovery Sport, which it claims is the world’s most versatile and capable premium compact SUV. It is also a significant departure for JLR as it marks the launch of its third marque, following Jaguar and Range Rover.
The Discovery Sport features a 5+2 seating layout in a footprint no larger than existing five-seat premium SUVs. It will go on sale in 170 markets in early 2015.
The Halewood plant, which is already home to the company’s fastest selling model of all time – the Range Rover Evoque, has seen investment in the site more than double and workforce treble over the last four years with 4,750 people now employed at the site.
The first Discovery Sport to roll off the production line, a Kaikoura Stone HSE Luxury spec vehicle, has officially been handed over to Stephen Attenborough, Commercial Director, Virgin Galactic, to support Land Rover’s long-term global partnership with Richard Branson’s pioneering commercial spaceline.
Richard Else, Jaguar Land Rover Halewood Operations Director said: “The decision to build the Land Rover Discovery Sport here at Halewood is a testament to our tremendous team who are committed to delivering outstanding customer quality as demonstrated by the award winning Range Rover Evoque. Investment in the plant since 2011 now stands at £500m and has most recently been demonstrated with the installation of a £45m state-of-the-art Aida servo press line.”
