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Prime Minister Boris has inaugurated JCB’s newest factory in India, bolstering the company’s global manufacturing presence.
JCB began manufacturing in India in 1979 and is now the country’s leading producer of construction equipment, with 11 factories in the UK employing over 7,500 people.
Johnson paid a visit to JCB’s newest manufacturing facility in India, a £100 million investment in Gujarat that will fabricate parts for global production lines. The new factory is in Vadodara, India’s West Coast, near the port city of Surat.
Lord Bamford, chairman of JCB, was present at the opening, having led the company’s expansion in India in the late 1970s, including the opening of its first factory in Ballabgarh, near Delhi. JCB now has six factories in India, including ones in Jaipur and Pune.
“JCB India manufactured just 39 machines in its first year of full production, but by next year will have produced a total of half a million,” Lord Bamford said. Such progress is only possible through continued investment, and the opening of our new Gujarat facility is a critical step in expanding our business locally and globally.”
“When complete, this new facility will create around 1,200 direct jobs and thousands more in the supply chain,” said Deepak Shetty, CEO and MD of JCB India. It will also serve as a model for the industry in terms of gender diversity and modern laser cutting, welding, and machining technologies. Because of its proximity to ports, raw materials, and skilled labour, Vadodara is a strategic location for JCB India. We’d like to express our gratitude to the Gujarat government for its unwavering support for this project.”
The new plant will be a gender-balanced manufacturing facility, with half of the workers being women. At the plant, JCB India has also established a skills centre where young professionals will be trained to work in a variety of manufacturing roles.
