The turnaround in Jaguar Land Rover’s fortunes since Indian owners Tata took over the prestige car-maker in 2008 is estimated to have created more 35,000 jobs in the 海角视频.
The figure emerged in the wake of the firm’s latest announcement at the Frankfurt Motor Show that it is .
The car-maker revealed a new generation of Jaguar cars would be produced at the Lode Lane site, following a £1.5 billion investment to develop new lightweight aluminium architecture.
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The new architecture to create an aluminium monocoque - a method of construction in which the body is integral with the chassis - will also be used on forthcoming Land Rover models.
The firm said the investment would underpin new Jaguar models, including a new mid-sized saloon to take on the BMW 3-Series, which will be launched in 2015.
It also unveiled a crossover concept car which would mark a foray into new territory for a firm that has so far built its reputation building sports cars and sports saloons.
The move is a historic one for the firm in that it is the first time Jaguar cars will be built at the Solihull site, which has produced Land Rover vehicles since 1948. The plant currently manufactures the Range Rover, Range Rover Sport, Land Rover Discovery and Land Rover Defender models.
Jaguar vehicles were traditionally all made in Coventry, most recently at the Browns Lane site which closed in 2005, and at the Castle Bromwich plant since 1977.
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In recent times all models, with the exception of the X-Type saloon which was built in Halewood on Merseyside, have been built at Castle Bromwich.
Jaguar Land Rover still has a Coventry presence with its global headquarters based in the Whitley area of the city.
The Solihull jobs boost comes on the back of a two-year growth spurt to cater for rising demand in emerging markets, which has seen 11,000 jobs created directly by the firm in the 海角视频, around 6,000 of them manufacturing jobs in the Midlands.
On the back of that it is estimated the firm’s rapid growth will see the creation of 24,000 jobs in the supply chain, many of them in the Midlands.
Work is already underway on a new aluminium bodyshop at the Solihull plant and the move follows on from Jaguar establishing a reputation as a pace-setter in the automotive industry by using aluminium to construct its cars.
The current XJ features aluminium body panels and its predecessor, which still stuck to the old Jaguar design cues, also used the metal in its construction from 2003.
Aluminium is also used in the Jaguar F-Type and the latest Range Rover and Range Rover Sport models.
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The weight-saving the metal offers brings huge benefits in terms of both performance and economy.
In 2012, Jaguar Land Rover sold 357,773 vehicles, an increase of 30 per cent on 2011, and made a profit of £1.675 billion on revenues of £15.8 billion.
The firm said it is set to invest £2.75 billion in its product creation and facilities in the financial year to March 2014.
Speaking from Frankfurt, Dr Ralf Speth, Jaguar Land Rover’s chief executive officer, said: “This announcement signals Jaguar Land Rover’s ambitions to push the boundaries and redefine premium car ownership.
“At Jaguar Land Rover we place the customer at the heart of everything we do and the introduction of a world class all-new aluminium vehicle architecture means we will be more competitive, flexible and efficient delivering exciting new products for our customers around the world.”
He added: “Jaguar Land Rover is a business driven by design, technology and innovation and this investment and level of job creation is yet further evidence of our commitment to advancing the capability of the 海角视频 automotive sector and its supply chain.”
The move was welcomed by the Government, with Jaguar Land Rover hailed as a 海角视频 manufacturing success story.
Business Secretary Vince Cable said: “Jaguar Land Rover has been experiencing great success over the last couple of years but this ground-breaking project takes Jaguar onto the next level.
“This all-aluminium architecture project typifies the type of innovative and high value R&D that the 海角视频 excels in and the Government is supporting through the automotive industrial strategy.”