The Gentleman Magazine Issue 3 | June/July | Page 26

emission, high-performance petrol and diesel engines to
power the full Jaguar and Land Rover vehicle line-up now and
in the future.
“Importantly, it also showcases the incredible impact Jaguar
Land Rover has had on the local economy with the creation
of the 1,400 skilled jobs promised when we opened the plant
in 2013. In fact we will be welcoming our 1,400th employee at
the end of this month.”
The start of petrol engine production reaffirms Jaguar Land
Rover’s strategic investment programme to build skills and
capability in the UK. Of the 1,400 people recruited at the
plant, more than 80 per cent live within 10 -miles of the
Wolverhampton plant, bringing opportunity and prosperity
to the region. More than 125,000 hours of training has
been undertaken to create a world-class workforce, which
includes a former bus driver, a nurse, a beauty therapist and a
locksmith.
Georgia Rigby, an Integrated Manufacturing Specialist in the
petrol assembly hall, joined the EMC in February 2016 from
the catering industry. She said: “The EMC has quickly grown
to be an incredibly important part of this region, celebrated
for the jobs created and the quality of the training and career
opportunities on offer.
“I was keen to join Jaguar Land Rover after hearing really
positive things from my friends who work here. I have been
here for just over a year now and it’s been fantastic.”
ENGINE MANUFACTURING
CENTRE CELEBRATES
PRODUCTION OF ITS FIRST
INGENIUM PETROL ENGINE
The EMC has also welcomed more than 50 apprentices
and graduates, all on a bespoke powertrain development
programme designed to support the design, engineering and
production of Jaguar Land Rover advanced engine range.
Jaguar Land Rover’s £1bn Engine Manufacturing Centre Amy Stephenson, a third-year Advanced Apprentice at the
EMC, said: “I’ve always been interested in engineering and
going to Wednesfield High, which is partnered with the
EMC, meant we were encouraged to explore engineering
career opportunities. In advance of joining the apprenticeship
programme, I had visited the EMC and found it a really
inspiring environment. It’s a brand new facility with new
people and I’m really proud to be a part it.”
Hailed as the most significant new automotive manufacturing
facility in the UK in the last decade. Production of the
2.0-litre, four-cylinder petrol Ingenium engine, adds to its
line-up, which also includes the ultra-low emission 2.0-litre
150PS, 163PS and 240PS four-cylinder diesel engines. Since production of the Ingenium diesel engine began
exactly two years ago, the EMC has built in excess of 400,000
engines. It has welcomed more than 40,000 visitors including
three members of the Royal family, 20 Government officials,
including prime ministers, British cabinet ministers and local
MPs and more than 3,000 children through its Education
Business Partnership Centre. More than 85,000 cups of tea
and coffee have been consumed and 14,000 slices of the
famous EMC flapjacks have been eaten.
(EMC) has celebrated production of its first Ingenium petrol
engine, which will debut in vehicles later in the summer.
The inaugural petrol engines mark the completion of the
first phase of the EMC; a fully flexible, state-of-the-art
manufacturing plant that now serves Jaguar Land Rover’s
three UK vehicle plants.
The milestone follows an announcement last week that the
EMC would manufacture the high-performance 2.0-litre
300PS Ingenium petrol engine – the most powerful four-
cylinder engine Jaguar Land Rover has ever produced – for
the 18MY Jaguar F-TYPE.
Trevor Leeks, EMC Operations Director, said:
“The start of petrol production marks an important milestone
for the plant as we move to providing a suite of ultra-low
26 | The Gentleman Magazine
Trevor Leeks has taken 3.6 million steps in his role as
Operations Director; the equivalent of travelling to the moon
and bac k seven times, and employees have given more than
1,000 hours of volunteering to local good causes.
In a very short time the EMC has made its mark as the
beating heart of Jaguar Land Rover’s UK manufacturing
operations.