Ground broken for £10 million technology centre in Leamington

Work has started in Leamington on a new £10 million global technology centre for the automotive industry.
Douglas Dawson, Chief Executive Officer for the Liberty Industries Group, Ed Peel, Development Manager for  Stoford Developments, Matt Western, MP for Warwick & Leamington, Anthony Blackwell, Chief Technology Officer for Liberty Engineering.Douglas Dawson, Chief Executive Officer for the Liberty Industries Group, Ed Peel, Development Manager for  Stoford Developments, Matt Western, MP for Warwick & Leamington, Anthony Blackwell, Chief Technology Officer for Liberty Engineering.
Douglas Dawson, Chief Executive Officer for the Liberty Industries Group, Ed Peel, Development Manager for Stoford Developments, Matt Western, MP for Warwick & Leamington, Anthony Blackwell, Chief Technology Officer for Liberty Engineering.

Liberty Engineering Group, part of Sanjeev Gupta’s global GFG Alliance, broke ground on Monday (March 25) on the construction of the state-of-the art 50,000 sq ft centre off Tachbrook Road.

It will become the UK hub for Liberty’s research and development and engineering expertise and when fully operational it will house more than 100 highly-skilled technical professionals including 40 new engineering posts that will be created by the investment.

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The centre will support Liberty’s plans to grow its market share in the automotive and other sectors by providing solutions ranging from design and prototyping to volume manufacturing.

Douglas Dawson, Chief Executive Officer for the Liberty Industries Group, Ed Peel, Development Manager for  Stoford Developments, Matt Western, MP for Warwick & Leamington, Anthony Blackwell, Chief Technology Officer for Liberty Engineering.Douglas Dawson, Chief Executive Officer for the Liberty Industries Group, Ed Peel, Development Manager for  Stoford Developments, Matt Western, MP for Warwick & Leamington, Anthony Blackwell, Chief Technology Officer for Liberty Engineering.
Douglas Dawson, Chief Executive Officer for the Liberty Industries Group, Ed Peel, Development Manager for Stoford Developments, Matt Western, MP for Warwick & Leamington, Anthony Blackwell, Chief Technology Officer for Liberty Engineering.

It will build upon existing expertise in the design and production of various components and systems while also growing Liberty’s capabilities for alternatively fuelled and autonomous vehicles.

Mr Gupta, who is the executive chairman of the GFG Alliance, said: “We believe in Britain’s bright future at the forefront of advanced engineering and manufacturing of next-generation vehicles.

“This investment will put Liberty at the heart of automotive’s exciting evolution and deliver cutting edge innovations that build on our status as a world-leading supplier in the sector.”

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The centre is expected to open in early 2020, a milestone year for automotive manufacturing at the site.

Automotive Products Co was founded nearby in 1920 and moved to the site in 1927.

In its heyday in the early 1980s the operation employed about 9,000 people.

Anthony Blackwell, chief technology officer for Liberty Engineering who is leading the development, said: “This facility will help us to play a pivotal role in the next generation of vehicles, symbolically on a site that has had such a prominent and proud history in UK engineering.

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The centre is being built adjacent to the original plant as part of the third phase of Spa Park being developed by Stoford Developments and Blackrock.

Benniman Construction Group are the lead contractors for the development.

Dan Gallagher, joint managing director of Stoford said: “We’re excited to be working with Liberty to deliver this superb new facility, which will create skilled jobs.

“The company has a long history in the area and this new investment, which will bring forward a new-high-spec building for the 21st century, is testament to the talented workforce here.”