Interview: Tony Francavilla -Vauxhall
CHRIS BARRY takes time out with the man at the helm of Vauxhall’s North West manufacturing plant at Ellesmere Port.
AFTER a year in the driving seat at Vauxhall’s Ellesmere Port plant Tony Francavilla declares that he is “very much at home” in the North West.
While many a newcomer would complain about this region’s weather – particularly after the severity of last winter – having moved from Poland, Francavilla is even enthusiastic about the climate here.
Extolling the virtues of his new base, he said: “We’re very happy and settled in West Kirby – this region is a great place to be. I’m obviously really enjoying the job too, so it’s a treat to be here.
“The North West is warm compared to where I lived before, and of course culturally very similar to Canada, so it’s not like living in a foreign country, where there was the odd time I’d go to the store to buy soup and come back with gravy.
“I’m not going to complain about the weather -10 is nothing compared to -40”
Born in Canada, the ice-hockey-loving 53-year-old father of two, has been with General Motors, Vauxhall’s American parent company for all of his working career.
Polite and engaging, his upbeat mood is no surprise given the success of Ellesmere Port’s latest models, the Astra Sports Tourer and the Astra hatchback before it.
After a tough few years for the automotive sector – General Motors was no exception having entered bankruptcy protection – things are on the up once more.
The new feel-good factor at Vauxhall Ellesmere Port is a case in point. A little more than 18 months ago the business was on the verge of being sold by GM, before a late U-tun by bosses in Detroit saw the planned deal scrapped.
The new Astra, designed and built at Ellesmere Port, proved to be a big success – even topping the domestic sales charts at one stage last year. This opened the door to the plant winning the brief to build the new Astra Sports Tourer.
Since its launch late last year production at Ellesmere Port has risen, 100 jobs have been created and a Saturday shift is being introduced later this summer, allowing staff to earn overtime.
“Demand is really strong across Europe for the new model, which I have to say is not a surprise to me. It is sleek and sporty and I think it has changed the paradigm,” Francavilla says.
Naturally passionate about his industry, his role and most importantly his 2,200 employees he is full of praise for their “talent and flexibility”, which has earned the plant a reputation as being among the best in Europe.
With important decisions looming in the medium term – not least regarding the electric-powered Ampera – Francavilla is convinced that the plant must adopt a regime of continual improvement.
“We must always aim to be better, more productive and improve our flexibility. We invest heavily in training and development, which has been key to our success.”
Asked if he is concerned about the change in the local business support – the North West Development Agency, a major financial supporter of Vauxhall in terms of grants, is being run down – he says: “Some of the training grants we received were multi-year, so we’re not seeing a difference.
“It’s not like since the change in government last year the plug has been pulled on support for us. I think there is a strong belief (in the Coalition) that manufacturing and automotive is extremely important.”
He believes though that more could be done, at a regional level, to stimulate a healthier supply chain for the automotive sector
“It makes a lot of sense to do this, from a financial and operational point of view. A lot of our components come from abroad, but it would be good to see a better supply chain here – but to persuade people to come and invest or relocate here, we would need some sort of regional funding, some tax breaks or investment support.
“If we can find a way of doing this I think it will be key to the success of the industry here in the UK.”
