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£28 million
investment in Prestwick operations will safeguard the jobs of 300 of
the current workforce.
The new investment is being supported by a Regional
Selective Assistance
grant of £5.6 million.
GE Caledonian today
announced a £28 million investment in its Prestwick operations, safeguarding
the jobs of 300 of the current workforce and preparing the facility for the
maintenance and overhaul of the company’s next generation of jet engines
which will power the new Boeing 787 Dreamliner and 747-8 aircraft.
GE Caledonian’s Prestwick site currently overhauls and repairs aero engines
and component parts, specialising in large engines for commercial aircraft
such as GE’s successful CF6 engine.
The new generation GEnx power plant, scheduled to succeed the CF6 engine, is
already designated for use in the Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft and the new
stretched version of the Boeing 747 freighter. To maintain and overhaul
these engines, GE plans to construct a new ‘test cell’ building at its
Prestwick site to test the GEnx engine, which is capable of withstanding the
engine’s output of 84,000lbs of thrust.
Managing Director of GE Caledonian David Crews said; “This is very positive
news for GE Caledonian and represents a significant investment in our site
over the next 5 years providing GE Caledonian with a new generation engine
to replace the CF6 engine which has been the mainstay of the Company for
many years.”
The new investment is being supported by a Regional Selective Assistance
grant of #5.6 million. Announcing the support, Deputy Minister for
Enterprise Allan Wilson MSP said; “This is excellent news for the workforce
at GE Caledonian and for Ayrshire. This new investment will safeguard 300
jobs and keep Ayrshire at the forefront of leading aerospace maintenance and
overhaul hubs against fierce global competition. I congratulate everyone at
GE Caledonian, Scottish Enterprise Ayrshire and Scottish Development
International for working so hard to secure this project for Scotland.”
Martin Togneri, Chief Executive of Scottish Development International said;
”Aerospace is a truly global business and Scotland’s reputation for skills,
capability and innovation is helping us to stay ahead in this demanding and
competitive sector. Making sure we are equipped to deal with the evolution
in engine design is paramount to the country’s future success in this
industry and I applaud the workforce at GE Caledonian for their
determination to make this happen.”
Scottish Enterprise Ayrshire is also supporting the company’s plans with a
£1.8 million Training Plus grant.
Jan Reid, Team leader, Aerospace and Defence with Scottish Enterprise
Ayrshire said; “It’s tremendous news that GE Caledonian is able to announce
that it will be the maintenance repair and overhaul centre for the new GEnx
engine just four days after the engine’s first ever flight in California.
The new engine is remarkably advanced and we will be supporting the company
to take full advantage of this opportunity on the global stage.”
Contacts
Rick Kennedy, GE Aviation
Tel: +1 513 243 3372 (US)
Email: rick.l.kennedy@ae.ge.com
Deb Case, GE Aviation
Tel: +1 513 243 0094 (US)
deborah.case@ae.ge.com
Angela-Claire Coutts, Scottish Executive
Tel: +44 (0) 131 244 2547
Email: Angela-Claire.coutts@scotland.gsi.gov.uk
Notes:
About GE
Caledonian
GE Aviation, an operating unit of General Electric Company (NYSE: GE), is
one of the world's leading manufacturers of jet engines for civil and
military aircraft. GE also is a world-leading provider of maintenance and
support services for jet engines.
About
Regional Selective Assistance
Regional Selective Assistance (RSA) is the main national scheme of financial
assistance to industry. It provides discretionary grants for investment
projects that will create or safeguard jobs in Assisted Areas. The scheme is
administered by the Innovation and Investments Grants unit of the Scottish
Executive. Payment of RSA is made in instalments, typically over several
years, provided that job and project expenditure targets are met. The amount
quoted above represent the maximum grant potentially payable if the project
is satisfactorily completed. Job numbers are based on the firms’ forecast at
the time a grant is offered, and are subject to change depending on future
economic conditions and other factors affecting the business concerned. For
further information on the scheme, go to www.rsascotland.gov.uk.
About
Scottish Development International
Scottish Development International works to attract inward investment and
knowledge to Scotland in order to help the economy grow. SDI also works to
help Scottish companies do more business overseas and to promote Scotland as
a good place to live, work and do business. It is jointly operated by the
Scottish Executive and Scottish Enterprise. Its work is guided by the global
connections theme of the Scottish Executive's Smart Successful Scotland
strategy for economic development in Scotland.
www.sdi.co.uk
About
Scottish Enterprise
Scottish Enterprise is the main economic development agency for Scotland
covering 93% of the population from Grampian to the Borders. The Scottish
Enterprise Network consists of Scottish Enterprise and 12 Local Enterprise
Companies. Working in partnership with the private and public sectors the
Network aims to build more and better businesses, to develop the skills and
knowledge of Scottish people, and to encourage innovation to make Scottish
business internationally competitive. Further information on Scottish
Enterprise is available at
www.scottish-enterprise.com
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