Engineering news
Rolls-Royce is to create hundreds of jobs at its Derby site over the next year as it begins ramping up production of its new Trent XWB engine.
Reports have said that around 350 new jobs at the Rolls-Royce civil aerospace site in Sinfin, Derby, could be created.
Rolls-Royce said: “As we ramp-up production of the Trent XWB to deliver on £30 billion worth of orders, we are working with employee representatives to increase the size of the workforce involved in assembling the engine.
“We are committed to the UK and have announced well in excess of £400 million of investment in new facilities in the last couple of years alone, including £30 million on the extension of our Trent XWB production facility in Derby.”
The announcement comes ahead of a meeting between Rolls-Royce chief executive Warren East and Midlands MPs, whose constituencies are home to Rolls-Royce factories. The meeting is set to focus on assuaging fears of the company moving its activities abroad, following news it has begun building a test bed for its biggest engines in Germany.
It is also expected East will ask the Midlands MPs to support Rolls-Royce in its bid to win government funding for R&D on its Advance and Ultrafan jet engines.
Rolls-Royce would not comment on the finer details of discussions to be had ahead of Tuesdays meeting, but did highlight recent investments across the country as a sign of its commitment to keeping activities in the UK. The company said: “Since 2009 we’ve spent just over £1.1 billion on the industrial transformation of our civil aerospace business alone, almost two-thirds of that investment to date has been in the UK.
“On top of that we’re putting £500 million into our nuclear submarines facility in Raynesway and have unveiled well in excess of £400 million of investment in new UK facilities in the last couple of years alone, including the new £100 million discs plant in Washinton, Tyne & Wear and our new £110 million turbine blade facility in Rotherham.”
In last week's Budget, Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne announced that Rolls-Royce would receive £7 million to develop "new machinery".
In November 2014, Rolls-Royce confirmed 2,600 job cuts that largely affected workers at the Derby plant and its plant in Bristol. Most recently it axed 200 senior managers in a response to falling sales. The company has stressed that no more jobs in the UK are to be cut.