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Jaguar Land Rover gets to work on new university R&D center

Jaguar Land Rover has a raft of new products in the pipeline, from the new Defender to the next-generation XF sedan. But new product isn't the only thing the British automaker is investing in: it's also opening new facilities around the world, including what it's calling the National Automotive Innovation Centre back home in the UK. Based at the University of Warwick, the new $220-million R&D center is the result of a joint effort between JLR, its parent company Tata, the manufacturing arm of the university and the British government. The facility will bring together professionals from the automaker as well as its suppliers with academics to encourage, as the name suggests, innovation in the automotive sector. Its 355,000 square feet are earmarked to become the hub for Jaguar Land Rover's advanced research activities, including "workshops, laboratories, virtual engineering suites and advanced powertrain facilities, equipped to enable a full range of design, visualisation and prototyping activities." The cornerstore was just laid in a ceremony this week, but the facility isn't due to open until the Spring of 2017 when it will encompass some 1,000 employees, including 600 relocated by JLR to the new location from other sites in the UK. Related Video: Construction Begins On New UK Automotive Innovation Centre For Jaguar Land Rover - GBP150 million National Automotive Innovation Centre (NAIC) will open in Spring 2017, providing a state-of-the-art technology hub for Jaguar Land Rover's advanced research team and collaborative partners from the supply chain and academia - To keep the UK and Jaguar Land Rover at the forefront of global innovation, the team will develop the vehicles and personal mobility solutions of the future - The NAIC will focus on inspiring the next generation of engineers - from schoolchildren to undergraduates.

Jaguar Land Rover output at two UK plants hit by chip shortage

LONDON — Output at two of Jaguar Land Rover's (JLR) British car factories will be temporarily halted from Monday, due to COVID-19 supply chain disruption, including a lack of semi-conductors, the firm said on Thursday. "We have adjusted production schedules for certain vehicles which means that our Castle Bromwich and Halewood manufacturing plants will be operating a limited period of non-production from Monday 26th April," the Tata Motors-owned company said. The COVID-19 pandemic has driven up demand for semiconductor chips for use in electronics like computers, as people worked from home, and suppliers are struggling to adjust, hitting output at many automakers. Trade flows have also been affected. On Wednesday, carmaker Stellantis said it would replace digital speedometers with more old-fashioned analogue ones in one of its Peugeot models, as the fallout continues. Renault's finance chief said on Thursday that car production fell by tens of thousands of vehicles in the first quarter as a result of the shortage. Output at JLR's third British car factory in Solihull, central England, will continue, the company said. "We are working closely with affected suppliers to resolve the issues and minimize the impact on customer orders wherever possible."  

Jaguar Land Rover CEO: Wrong Brexit deal will cost thousands of UK jobs

BIRMINGHAM, England — The wrong Brexit deal could cost tens of thousands of jobs, the boss of Britain's biggest carmaker Jaguar Land Rover warned on Tuesday, saying he had no idea whether his plants would be able to operate after Britain leaves the European Union next year. Ralf Speth also said that the company would not be able to build cars if customs checks meant that the motorway to and from the southern English port of Dover, which is used to transport components, becomes a "car park" due to snarl-ups of people no longer able to move freely among EU countries. Speth made the warning at a conference in Birmingham, central England, speaking shortly before Prime Minister Theresa May, who is battling to have her so-called Chequers Brexit plan accepted by many in her Conservative Party as well as the EU ahead of Britain's departure from the bloc on March 29. "A thousand (jobs were) lost as a result of diesel policy, and those numbers will be counted in the tens of thousands if we do not get the right Brexit deal," warned Speth, referring to redundancies made earlier this year at the firm. "Currently I do not even know if any of our manufacturing facilities in the UK will be able to function on the 30th," he said. The boss of JLR, which built nearly a third of Britain's cars last year, also said long-standing issues around low productivity in Britain could be compounded by a Brexit agreement which made the country less competitive. "It is thousands of pounds cheaper to produce vehicles for instance in Eastern Europe than in Solihull, and what decisions will I be forced to make if Brexit means not merely that costs go up but that we cannot physically build cars on time and on budget in the UK?" he said.Reporting by Costas Pitas