British manufacturer GKN Wheels opened a new facility in northern China last week.
The factory, known as Lianyungang GKN Huading Wheels Co. Ltd, will produce wheels for agricultural equipment primarily for the tractor and combine-harvester markets in the Far East.
Last month, the Telford based company, a world leader in the design, manufacture and supply of wheels for off-highway applications, announced it had purchased a 65% majority share in the agricultural tractor wheel production facility Lianyungang Huading Wheel Co.
Steven Norgrove, Managing Director of GKN Wheels & Structures, said: “The opening of Lianyungang GKN Huading Wheels will allow us to act as a local provider with a global support system for our key strategic customers operating locally and internationally, and represents an important expansion of GKN’s long-established working relationship with China.
“We welcome Huading Wheels into the GKN family and look forward to helping them serve the local needs of our Chinese customers but also to take the opportunity to bring their products further into the global market place,” he added.
Production at the plant will commence from next month and the move signals further growth for GKN Wheels, who have 1,540 employees worldwide.
This includes five manufacturing locations, including two major test centers and has 1,540 employees. It has key manufacturing bases in China, Denmark, Italy, the UK and the USA.