A local MP has praised the work of a major local employer after visiting their huge site in Newton Aycliffe.
Sedgefield MP Paul Howell was impressed by the state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities at Gestamp Tallent on Aycliffe Business Park.
The original company was formed in 1948 by Roy Tallent and it manufactured fancy goods and traded under the name of Roy Tallent (Plating), in one of the original Royal Ordnance Factories built for the second world war.
In 1955 the Colston Family took ownership and its product range extended to domestic appliances, paraffin heaters, washing machines, cooker hobs, microwaves and gas fire cases.
Gestamp Tallent now works with many of the leading Western European vehicle manufacturers with over 60% of components manufactured in Aycliffe exported.
The car parts manufacturer, which makes chassis components for the likes of Nissan, Jaguar Land Rover, Volvo and Ford, has over 100 plants across the globe, with five in the UK – Cannock and West Midlands in the Midlands area, Llanelli in Wales and Washington – as well as its biggest UK site in Newton Aycliffe.
Gestamp recently invested in the Tallent Academy, a 4,300 sq ft facility which sits adjacent to its huge factory – the new facility will include a wellbeing space for staff and focus on upskilling current workforce as well their future apprentices.
Paul Howell said: “It was great to meet with Gestamp’s leadership and understand their business better.
“They have established positions supplying many brands throughout the world which helps manage risks as different companies experience different problems with Covid, dependent on both where they and their customers are based.
“It’s helpful for me to represent to government what businesses like them need to thrive and grow.”
Gestamp’s Aycliffe plant director Jonathan Phillips said: “We were delighted to welcome our MP into our factory and show him not just the type of work we’re doing, but also the investments we’re making in new technology and equipment to future-proof the business.
“We’ve been long-standing employers for Newton Aycliffe and surrounding areas for many years and we’re working hard to maintain our growth through innovative new product lines as we adapt to new technology, so it was a great opportunity to show Paul what we’re doing to achieve that.”
Gestamp is a multinational specialized in the design, development and manufacture of highly engineered metal components for top vehicle manufacturers.
It develops products with an innovative design to produce lighter and safer vehicles, including EVs, which offer improved energy consumption and a reduced environmental impact. Its products cover the areas of body-in-white, chassis and mechanisms.
The company is present in 24 countries with more than 100 manufacturing plants, 13 R&D centres and a workforce of more than 40,000 employees worldwide. Its turnover was €7.456m in 2020.