Rolls-Royce Order for SKF Boosts Local Economy
Stonehouse based manufacturer, SKF Aeroengine UK, has won a major new order to produce parts for the latest generation of Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 aircraft engines, to be fitted to the new Boeing 787 Dreamliner. Worth several million pounds over a five year period, the new order will provide an important boost to the local economy, helping to safeguard the long term future of jobs at the Stonehouse plant and, depending on the successful sales of the Rolls-Royce engines, creating the opportunity for new engineering and factory employment.
SKF Aeroengine develops and manufactures specialised bearings and other high performance components at its Stonehouse factory, for use in a wide range of civil and military aircraft, and motorsport applications. The company has worked closely with Rolls-Royce for many years and was originally one of two suppliers selected for the engineering development phase of the new Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engines. Now, SKF Aeroengine has been appointed as the sole supplier of bearings for the first production phase of the Trent 1000 until 2012.
The Trent 1000 engines are to be fitted to the revolutionary new Boeing 787 Dreamliner, which is due to enter service in 2008. Steve Chittock, European Director for SKF Aeroengine, explains that, “This is an exciting and important order for the company and we’re delighted to be appointed as sole supplier to Rolls-Royce, and to be so closely associated with such prestigious projects with two of the biggest and most successful companies in the industry”.
The Rolls-Royce order comes shortly after a period of major investment at SKF Aeroengine’s Stonehouse factory, with over £1 million being spent recently on new machine tools and production systems as part of a continuous programme designed to keep the company at the leading edge of manufacturing excellence, while retaining traditional engineering and design expertise. Steve Chittock adds, “We invest heavily in staff training and development programmes to sustain and develop one of the most highly skilled workforces anywhere in Europe, ensuring that we’re combining the latest practices with production techniques that have been perfected over many years; indeed, the success that we have experienced with Rolls-Royce can be directly attributed to the excellence of our entire workforce, including design, engineering, manufacturing and customer support teams”.
Although the Boeing 787 Dreamliner is not scheduled to enter service for two years, it has been decided that the Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 engine will be fitted to all three operating versions of the aircraft, with Boeing already announcing orders for over 400 aircraft. As a result, the future for SKF Aeroengine, the Stonehouse factory and jobs in the Gloucestershire area looks particularly bright.
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