JLR demands prompt expansion for components manufacturer
THE demands of Jaguar Land Rover on its supply chain has prompted a further West Midlands components manufacturer to expand capacity.
Ricor, which supplies a range of components to the carmaker, has taken on a 37,000 sq ft unit at the Delta Point site in West Bromwich.
The Studley-based company will be installing robotic assembly cells in the new premises so it can produce the components much in demand from JLR.
Ricor is the second JLR supplier this week to announce an expansion of its facilities.
Coleshill-based Sertec announced earlier this week that it was taking out 175,000 sq ft close to its base so it too could continue to process JLR business.
The moves underline the current strength of the West Midlands automotive industry, which remains in something of a bubble compared with the rest of the manufacturing sector.
Commenting on his company’s move, John Beary, managing director of Ricor, said: “We needed to free up additional manufacturing space and so we instructed (agent) John Truslove to search for suitable premises.”
John Truslove director, Ben Truslove said: “After meeting to agree the search criteria, we initiated a comprehensive search of the West Midlands and prepared a shortlist.
“We took Ricor’s senior management team on a tour of the options, having initially identified Delta Point before it was actually on the market.
“Having contacted the landlord’s agent, James Bird at Bulleys in Wolverhampton, we negotiated terms, produced a Schedule of Condition and were then very much hands-on through to completion.”
Ricor has manufacturing sites both on the 17-acre site at Studley, plus a factory in Poland. It also has an engineering resource centre in Shenzen, China.
James Bird said: “When Ben Truslove contacted us, we knew that Delta Point was ideal for the purpose and we are really pleased to have secured such a prestigious tenant for this busy industrial park.”
Bulleys and Colliers acted jointly on behalf of the landlord Revelan.
