Jobs created as manufacturer launches £10m HQ at renowned industrial site
An expanding Coventry manufacturing business has unveiled its £10m headquarters which has helped complete the rebirth of one of the region’s most famous industrial sites.
The Expert Group, which counts clients including Jaguar Land Rover, Aston Martin and Ford, has created a 75,000 sq ft design and manufacturing technology facility in Lyons Park and is set to expand its workforce by 40 in the next few months.
The creation of the new building means that Lyons Park – which used to be Jaguar Cars’ Browns Lane plant – is now fully occupied.
Expert Tooling & Automation’s new home has brought its five premises in Coventry together under one roof.
Twenty jobs have been created in project management, mechanical engineering and electrical engineering by the move to take the number of employees in Coventry to 180 with an additional 40 jobs expected to be added in the coming months.
Managing director Angelo Luciano, who acquired Expert Tooling & Automation in 1998, started his career with Jaguar Cars in 1986.
He said: “When I was 22, I worked at Jaguar Cars in Castle Bromwich and visited the Browns Lane site often so it seems fitting that Expert Tooling & Automation has become the final company to move to the site of its former factory.
“Three of our previous purpose-built units were in Banner Lane in Coventry and we needed to expand to accommodate our increasing order book.
“We’re developing technologies for lightweight electric vehicles including new joining methods for mixed materials used vehicle body structures consisting of composites and aluminium, and we’re also involved in the design and manufacturing of battery production lines.
“Human collaborative robots will become more mainstream in the industrial automation sector with the expected changes in the employment market and the increase demand for further automation, these robots are designed to work alongside humans without the restriction of safety guards. Expert has more than extensive experience in this field and we were the first company to install a human collaborative robot at Jaguar Land Rover in 2017.
“We are really proud of our new technology centre and our new headquarters will mean we can continue to compete for work nationally and internationally in the future.”
Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands, opened the new facility.
He said: “This is a fantastic facility which will help to further establish Expert Tooling & Automation as the UK’s largest automotive equipment manufacturer.
“Angelo and his team are to be congratulated on steadily building a successful business over the last 21 years and this impressive new headquarters will provide the platform for future expansion and job creation.
“The company’s success means that the renaissance of Lyons Park has been completed and that speaks volumes for the economy of the city and the region.”
