David Cameron was given a tour of Caterham Group's Leafield
Technical Centre on Friday 15th February by Caterham Group
Co-Chairman Tony Fernandes.
Leafield Technical Centre has been home to Caterham F1 Team
since the team moved its factory base and more than 200 staff from
Norfolk to the site in Oxfordshire in August 2012. Caterham Cars,
the roadcar division of Caterham Group that recently unveiled a
unique 50/50 partnership with Renault to build a new range of cars,
will also move its base to Leafield in due course, creating more
jobs and significant revenue for the UK economy.
David Cameron MP: "This is the dream investment
for any constituency. Caterham F1 is bringing high-end jobs,
engineering and manufacturing to West Oxfordshire. Not only will it
create jobs but it will be a real boost to our local economy. On a
national scale, it is great to see Britain designing and selling
more cars. It is businesses like this which are helping to lift our
economy out of a very difficult time and making sure that Britain
thrives in the global race. I am so excited to welcome this great
business to Leafield and I wish them every success."
Tony Fernandes, Caterham Group Co-Chairman: "It
was an honour to give Mr Cameron a tour of Leafield Technical
Centre and to demonstrate the cutting-edge technology and
innovative thinking that is at the heart of Caterham Group.
Representatives from each of the arms of Caterham Group were on
hand to demonstrate to Mr Cameron how Caterham Cars, Caterham
Technology and Innovation (CTI) and Caterham Composites are setting
new standards for innovative thinking and cutting-edge technology
across a wide range of industries.
"Caterham Cars and Caterham Technology and Innovation are now
working in close partnership with Renault to produce a new range of
sportscars that will soon showcase our world class technology to
automotive customers worldwide. CTI and Caterham Composites are
also in a very exciting phase of their development. Both companies
are working across a wide range of industries, including
automotive, aircraft, marine, sports and leisure, bringing their
specialist knowledge of innovative technological solutions and
composite materials to set new standards in their fields.
"For example, CTI and Caterham Composites are now into the
development phase of a revolutionary lightweight aircraft seat.
Using their specialist knowledge of composite materials and
cutting-edge design and manufacturing skills, they will soon
demonstrate how the inter-connected businesses within Caterham
Group can combine to revolutionise one of the key global
industries.
"The specialist knowledge we have within our group all began
when we launched our F1 team in 2009. Since then, in just over
three years, we have built a range of world class businesses that
complement one another perfectly. Having the opportunity to
demonstrate this to Mr Cameron was a very rewarding experience and
I am sure he found the visit extremely interesting. We are
extremely proud of what Caterham Group has achieved in such a short
time, and Leafield Technical Centre is the perfect environment to
showcase just how far we believe Caterham Group can go."