Caterpillar’s Building Construction Products Division yesterday announced a £50m investment in their assembly plant at Desford, Leicestershire and fabrications facility in Stockton-on-Tees.
The investment will be used to fund manufacturing capacity increases to meet growing customer demand for their products, as well as further investment in new products, and research & development programmes.
This investment, which follows Caterpillar’s recent announcement of the creation of 300 permanent jobs at Desford, will have a significantly positive impact on the regional economies in the East Midlands and the North East. Many local engineering and manufacturing companies supply components to Caterpillar. Commenting on the announcement Baljinder Sanghera, Managing Director of Leicester based firm Kaby Engineering, said, “Kaby has been a supplier to Caterpillar for 33 years and with this new growth the future looks very bright for everyone here in Leicester”. He added “Kaby has been working very closely with Caterpillar in strengthening the supply chain right from initial design of the product to delivery at the assembly line and removing waste throughout the whole process.”
Business Minister Mark Prisk said, “The news of the £50m investment, along with the recent creation of 300 permanent jobs is excellent for the East Midlands and the North East. This is a real vote of confidence in UK manufacturing and in our capabilities in construction equipment innovation and production. It’s manufacturers like Caterpillar and their UK supply chain that will help us rebalance the economy, create jobs and encourage sustainable economic growth that benefits the whole country.”
“This investment is the most recent example of the Company’s on-going strategy to invest in its UK operations to support customer demand in the long-term,” said Robert Droogleever, General Manager of Caterpillar’s Global Backhoe Loader Business. “Our UK workforce have demonstrated that they have the capability to design and assemble world-class products in Desford and Stockton to the benefit of the regional economies in which we operate and, with more than 90% of our products being exported, to send a strong signal about the ability of UK-based manufacturers to be globally competitive.”
