Following the closure of the historic Dunlop Motorsport factory in Castle Bromwich, UK last year, Jaguar Land Rover has purchased the property and is planning to utilize it for further expansion of its base in north Birmingham.
Following the closure of the historic Dunlop Motorsport factory in Castle Bromwich, UK last year, Jaguar Land Rover has purchased the property and is planning to utilize it for further expansion of its base in north Birmingham.
To that end, JLR has revealed plans to build more than 360,000 sq ft of new industrial and logistics space on the site previously used by Dunlop Motorsport. During World War II the site was developed to manufacture Supermarine Spitfire airplanes for the war effort.
After their landlord sold the site to Jaguar Land Rover in late 2013, and with almost 200 jobs at stake, Dunlop managers and Birmingham economic leaders began negotiations to try to keep the factory open. But, faced with significant operations already located in France and Germany, and an eye toward other parts of Europe and the Far East, Dunlop closed the factory in May 2014.
JLR recently submitted plans for a temporary car park to house '’in progress' vehicles, and now it wants permission to build a 183,800 sq ft warehouse for use as a logistics center, and a second unit covering 180,890 sq ft for an automated storage and retrieval system.
The new buildings will receive and store parts and components which will then be transported within the existing plant to the production line.
The design and plans for the site are a key part of JLR’s plans for continued expansion and growth in production over the coming years.
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