BEGINNING: Nissan Note enters production
Nissan are today celebrating the start of production of the new Note at their record-breaking Sunderland plant.
Already the UK’s biggest-ever car manufacturer, the Sunderland site is boosting production even further following a £125million investment by Nissan, secured by a £9.3million Regional Growth Fund grant.
The official start of production is being marked at a special ceremony on the plant’s Line 2.
In attendance will be John Martin, Senior Vice President for Manufacturing, Purchasing and Supply Chain Management at Nissan, and Business minister Michael Fallon.
Mr Martin said: “The new Nissan Note is giving mainstream B-segment customers an unprecedented combination of design, technology and safety features which up to now have only been available in premium brands.
“This investment is further endorsement of our Sunderland Plant, which is now an international benchmark for productivity and quality as a result of the hard work and consistently high performance by the management and workforce.
“I would like to congratulate all of my colleagues at the plant and in our supply base on the launch of this new model, and once again thank the UK government for their ongoing support for the automotive industry.”
In addition to vehicle assembly, the new Note brings additional work to the Nissan Sunderland Plant and its supply chain in axle production, cylinder head casting, camshaft machining and engine assembly.
The Nissan Note is responsible for 2,000 new jobs, including 400 staff at Nissan’s workforce at Sunderland – taking the number of British jobs supported by Nissan to more than 35,000.
It has already enjoyed 14,000 pre-orders across Europe.
Mr Fallon added: “The investment by Nissan to make the Note at the world-class Sunderland plant has been achieved by government and industry working together.
“It provides a very welcome boost to their exceptional workforce, the North East economy and the country.
“Working in partnership with industry, our automotive industrial strategy sets out how we will secure the long term future of the sector as a UK success story by growing our share of the value chain and by getting ahead of the game in research and development on the vehicles of tomorrow.”
The new Note heralds the beginning of Nissan’s busiest-ever launch period, supporting the company’s goal of becoming the number one Asian brand in Europe.
With design, engineering and manufacturing operations all based within Europe, more than 80% of the Nissan cars sold in Europe are made on the continent.
