At a recent visit to the firm’s Tyseley base, bosses convinced Andy Street, the Mayor of the West Midlands, that the switch to greener transport solutions presents a ‘once in a generation’ opportunity for their company and the region.
Managing Director Stuart Hateley believes the area’s traditional strengths in innovation and R&D are already paving the way for new contracts globally and wants the Government to support this drive by ensuring that all publicly funded projects feature initiatives that ensure UK-produced goods are given a boost.
His own company has recently invested £2m in R&D, employee upskilling and state-of-the-art testing technology to help it bring a range of zero-emission vehicle products to market that are now being sold into the battery, electric and hydrogen fuel cell, on-highway, off-highway and rail markets.
“West Midlands manufacturers have really embraced the electrification drive and are exploring ways where they can take conventional technology and transform it into products that will help OEMs achieve zero emission targets.” commented Stuart Hateley.
He continued: “It was great to welcome Andy Street to look at our technology developments, which have led to our recent successes and discuss ways in which we could work together to ensure that Government-funded projects deliver even more benefit to the local area.
“The conversations were very positive and there was a genuine desire from all parties to explore ways where we could accelerate the development of the region’s ‘electric’ supply chain, boosting domestic and international trade in the process.”
Andy Street, the Mayor of the West Midlands, added his support: “We have a unique opportunity to lead the UK in electrification and the Green Industrial Revolution, and we’ve already enjoyed several funding successes that will help build a more sustainable future – not least when it comes to transport infrastructure.”
