Building a new automotive manufacturing plant can’t be a simple matter. Fortunately for Aston Martin, though, it doesn’t have to start from scratch.
The new location, away from its main facility in Gaydon, is opening at a St Athan – a former military base in Wales, where it will set up shop across three giant aircraft hangars.
The site was chosen, thanks in no small part to government incentives, over 20 other locations the automaker scouted around the world, including in the United States. The St Athan facility won out, and will serve as the workspace for some 750 employees who will work on building Aston’s forthcoming new crossover, previewed by the DBX concept at the 2015 Geneva Motor Show.
Once launched, the DBX will compete with the latest string of high-end performance crossovers coming down the line from the likes of Lamborghini and Ferrari – to say nothing of recently launched models from Maserati and Bentley.
First Aston will need to finish converting the facility, but the process is already well underway. The company awarded the Phase 2 contract to TRJ Ltd, the same local construction firm that won the Phase 1 tender back in December.
“This is yet another step on our journey in Wales, with the facility now starting to take shape,” said Aston Martin CEO Andy Palmer. “TRJ have proven themselves during ‘Phase 1’ and we look forward to working with them over the course of this next phase of the project.”
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