Ford’s Bridgend engine plant in Wales is expanding following a £100m investment to produce a new premium 3.2-litre six-cylinder unit, initially for Volvo.
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Volume production began this week.
The first vehicles to use the short in-line six-cylinder engine, designated SI6, are Volvo’s redesigned S80 flagship saloon and recently refreshed XC90 sports utility vehicle.
The compact SI6 engines are assembled on the Bridgend line which already produces V8s and features flexible technology – enabling operators to switch between different products.
Annual volumes of the all-alloy, 24-valve 3.2-litre SI6 at full capacity will be 209,000. This is in addition to Bridgend’s 78,100 annual V8 output on the same line. The new SI6 and V8 engines are at the forefront of Ford Bridgend’s expansion that will result in the production of a million engines a year by 2009.
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By GlobalDataOutput at Ford’s diesel engine centre in Dagenham, Essex, is also on track to top 1m engines a year, bringing Ford’s total UK engine production up to 2m units a year.
Employment levels at the plant are rising to meet the increasing demand for its latest six- and eight-cylinder units and its four-cylinder volume engines. Ford Bridgend employs 1,629 skilled production and support employees, with a further 250 recruits required in the next two years.
The first SI6 off the line marked the completion of a £245m two-year investment programme at the plant to produce the new engines for Ford’s Premier Automotive Group (PAG) brands.
The £145m 4.4 and 4.2-litre V8 programme, which debuted in May 2004, was for Range Rover, Land Rover Discovery and Jaguar models. The SI6, representing the balance of the investment, is for Volvo and other vehicle applications to be announced later.
Regional grant aid of up to £19.7 million has come from the Welsh Assembly government.
