New Munitions Plant Will Sustain British Army and North East Jobs
21 Dec 2009 | Ref. 251/2009
Washington, United Kingdom. - A new £33m plant on the site of the old Dunlop factory in Washington will ensure even better supplies of ammunition to front-line troops while securing north east jobs.
In around two years BAE Systems will close its First World War-vintage Birtley site and staff will make the two-mile trip to Washington to an all-new facility. The old site will be redeveloped for housing and retail use. Birtley makes empty shells for filling with explosives at a sister site in South Wales and has never handled explosives.
The ground-breaking ceremony for the new site today constitutes a remarkable turnaround since 2002 when Birtley was losing money and facing closure. The change is largely due to a revolutionary 15-year £2 billion partnering agreement called MASS (Munitions Acquisition - the Supply Solution), signed just over a year ago with the UK Ministry of Defence.
The agreement commits the MoD and BAE Systems to working together and has proven a great success, delivering increased supplies of ammunition on time to front-line troops. Birtley has doubled mortar bomb production recently and the new plant will have even greater capacity to meet the needs of the front line.
The Army's equipment chief General Gary Coward told workers:
"In Afghanistan our troops require high quality ammunition to protect themselves and the Afghan people, but also to prosecute the campaign against the Taleban. Even greater quantities are required to train our troops prior to deployment. This nature of warfare has changed little in recent years, but the means of production and contracting has moved on considerably.
"Innovative solutions are required to provide an agile, value for money supply solution, both now and for the future, and the MASS contract between the MoD and BAE Systems is a prime example, guaranteeing high quality and timely delivery."
Charlie Blakemore, Managing Director for BAE Systems' Munitions business, said:
"MASS allows us to take a long-term strategic view. BAE Systems is investing more than £120 million over the next five years to accelerate transformation of our munitions sites into modern, safer, highly-automated, energy-efficient and flexible facilities. It's a good deal for the taxpayer, good for jobs and, most of all, it's good for the men and women fighting to protect their country."
MASS guarantees the MoD ceiling prices for ten years and includes incentives to make savings, which will be shared between the MoD and BAE Systems. There are penalty clauses for under-performance. It also provides for the development of new, better-performing and safer munitions.
Workers have had a big say in the new plant which will give a much better working environment. Simon Miller, a former apprentice at Birtley, is in charge of building the new plant. He explains:
"The new site is closer to where most of our employees live and on the coast-to-coast cycle track, so many plan to bike to work. Employees requested a gymnasium, drying rooms, internet access and a learning centre within their welfare block, so we have incorporated these into the building specification."
The Washington plant will feature a modern forge run remotely from a control room. It will also carry out machining and treatments of large calibre tank, mortar and artillery ammunition using robotic machining cells and new, environmentally-friendly, paint and treatment capabilities.
Two more manufacturing sites are being transformed over a five-year period under MASS. The improved plants will result in energy savings of 18,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions a year, equivalent to the carbon footprint of 1,500 UK citizens.
About BAE Systems
BAE Systems is the premier global defence, security and aerospace company delivering a full range of products and services for air, land and naval forces, as well as advanced electronics, security, information technology solutions and customer support services. With approximately 105,000 employees worldwide, BAE Systems' sales exceeded £18.5 billion (US $34.4 billion) in 2008.
For further information please contact:
Mike Sweeney, BAE Systems
Tel: +44 (0) 0780 171 6452
mike.sweeney2@baesystems.com
John Neilson, BAE Systems
Tel: +44 (0) 0780 233 7704
john.neilson@baesystems.com
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