With the unveiling of Aston Martin Lagonda's first SUV scheduled for the last quarter of 2019, work is progressing to complete the new St Athan factory in Wales.
The site, which started life as a series of Ministry of Defence 'Super Hangars', is being converted into a luxury car manufacturing plant, the brand's second, and destined ultimately to be its 'Home of Electrification' when planned BEV models enter production.
About 100 employees are already on site and the paint shop is fully installed with construction of the production line well under way.
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Once fully commissioned early in the first quarter of 2019, when production of the first prototype models will commence, the workforce will be boosted to nearer 200. Over 70 Welsh employees are set to join St Athan having spent the last two and a half years at the Gaydon headquarters in Warwickshire.
This core group will train new employees at St Athan plant. The workforce will be increasing during the first half of 2019 then increasing rapidly to more than 700 by the first quarter of 2020 as DBX production ramps up.
Andy Palmer, Aston Martin Lagonda president and group chief executive officer said: "A second production facility is a critical step in delivering our Second Century Plan. The St Athan facility will initially commence with the production of our first SUV but will ultimately be a global centre of excellence for the production of luxury high performance EVs, including Lagonda: the world's first luxury electric automotive brand."
