Engine manufacturer Cummins has showcased a £20m investment into its Huddersfield site as it hosted a group of local politicians.
The US firm's St. Andrew's Road Turbocharger Plant has recently been refurbished along with research and development facilities and office space at the site. The Mayor of West Yorkshire, Tracy Brabin, Huddersfield MP Barry Sheerman and Labour’s parliamentary candidate for Huddersfield, Harpreet Uppal, were shown the result of works at the site which employs 1,000 workers who develop, produce and refurbish turbochargers.
Cummins also laid out plans to provide £800,000 funding to build solar panels across the Huddersfield site and demonstrated how it is investing in the development of alternative air handling solutions for zero carbon powertrains such as hydrogen.
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Ms Brabin said: “I was delighted to visit Cummins’ new site and see the fantastic, innovative work they’re doing to drive forward green technologies in West Yorkshire and around the World. Our region has a strong and proud manufacturing history, and it’s vital we harness these strengths to create skilled, well-paid jobs as part of a greener, more sustainable future. We’re dedicated to working with partners like Cummins, across the public and the private sector, to build a Net Zero West Yorkshire by 2038.”
Mr Sheerman added: "I was delighted to meet some of Cummins' apprentices in Parliament recently. It's always a pleasure to visit Cummins and be reminded of their innovation and scale. People think of Huddersfield as a university town, or perhaps traditionally a textile town, but the truth is that we're a manufacturing and engineering town. It's great to see Cummins maintaining and building on that history and investing in our town and our young people."
Dr John Clark, executive director research and development at Cummins in Huddersfield, added: "It has been a pleasure to host Mayor Brabin, Barry Sheerman MP and Harpreet Uppal at our newly upgraded facility. We are very proud of what we produce at this site, the innovative ideas we forge, and the talented team we support. We are excited to see how our recent investment in the site aids development and helps us reach our net zero ambitions.”