MG owner set to end production at Longbridge
THE Chinese-owner of car manufacturer MG UK is set to end its assembly operation in Longbridge in a move which signals the end of car production in Birmingham.
Reports claim parent company SAIC plans to make 25 assembly workers redundant and production moved to China.
The 400 designers and other staff employed at the SAIC Motor Technical Centre (SMTC) at Longbridge, together with staff at the brand’s various dealerships are unaffected by the decision.
SAIC has been mindful of controlling costs in an increasingly competitive market and manufacturing vehicles in China makes more sense economically.
Whilst a sad day for the British automotive industry, the scale of production at the plant will barely register a blip on the global sector.
In truth, the Longbridge production was only ever a token gesture to traditionalists and volumes were so low that they barely registered on the balance sheet.
Nevertheless, the decision will impact the inherent Britishness of the product, which ironically was one of the reasons why firstly Nanjing Automotive Corporation (NAC), and then SAIC wanted to snap up the brand in the demise of MG Rover.
Production returned to Longbridge in 2008 following the acquisition of the MG brand three years earlier by the then NAC when it picked over the ruins of MG Rover and exported much of its production equipment to China.
However, the Birmingham operation was so small that it saw the assembly of just 50 cars a week; the only vehicle then rolling off the production line being a revamped MGF sports car.
SAIC quickly brought the curtain down on that model, choosing instead to focus on the emerging supermini sector, which at the time of the credit crunch and the car scrappage scheme was being dominated by the South Koreans.
Since then, the brand has ended any pretence of being a sports car manufacturer in line with the brand’s heritage, favouring the kind of cheap-to-produce, high-volume cars favoured in Asia.
The BBC quoted an MG spokesman as saying centralising production demonstrated MG’s commitment to the future, while continuing to develop its design talent in the UK.
Ironically, the decision comes as latest figures released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers & Traders (SMMT) earlier this month, show the brand increasing its sales by 130% compared to the same month last year. In addition, it reported the 4th highest percentage increase in registrations across the new car market, with year-to-date figures up almost 18% compared to 2015.
With three months of the year still to run, the figures show MG has already sold more cars than in any full year previously, up to 2015. With firstly its MG3 and now its GS SUV (left) finding a new generation of buyers.
However, taking this in isolation is misleading.
The figures actually show that MG sold 99 cars in August (2015: 43) and for the first eight months of the year just 1,950 new models have been registered.
Matthew Cheyne, Sales and Marketing Director at MG Motor UK, said at the release of the figures: “The achievement of such positive sales figures is not only testament to the quality of our model range, but also to the outstanding performance and commitment of our national dealer network.
“We take great pride in developing cars to suit every customer. Our MG GS SUV perfectly blends style and functionality to make it the ultimate all-rounder, while the MG3 is fun both inside and out – packed full of technology to suit all manner of driving styles, without breaking the bank.
“We’re delighted with our performance so far in 2016 and look forward to carrying this on in the coming months as we continue to offer our customers competitive, affordable and exciting vehicles.”
