British PM Cameron visits Caterham’s Leafield Centre
Leafield Technical Centre, UK 19 Feb 2013: 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 over 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. The site is located in Cameron’s constituency.
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.”
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