Dr Luke Evans, Member of Parliament for Bosworth, welcomed Nusrat Ghani, Minister of State for Business and Trade, to Caterpillar in Desford to see the development and manufacturing happening at the site.
Following the 70th anniversary of the opening of Caterpillar in Desford last year, the local MP invited the Minister to see the site in person. The global giant Caterpillar, famed for its heavy duty machinery as well as clothing, chose Desford as its first site out of the United States. Since opening 70 years ago the Desford site continues to grow from strength to strength, bringing further investment and jobs with it.
The Minister met with Dr Evans and Rob Walker, UK Operations Manager for Caterpillar, to hear how Caterpillar recruit over 30 new apprentices at the Desford site each year and see some of the positive results from Caterpillar’s continued investment in people, technology and infrastructure in the UK.
Nusrat Ghani, the Minister also responsible for Trade, heard how 85% of products manufactured at Caterpillar sites across the United Kingdom are exported around the world. She learnt about the pivotal role the Desford plant plays in manufacturing the Backhoe digger and the move to producing electric diggers, right here in Bosworth.
Shortly after the visit, new figures from the Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit showed that Hinckley and Bosworth is the fourth biggest net zero economy in England and Wales. With Net Zero firms making up more than 12% of Hinckley and Bosworth’s economy, and representing a value of £258 million.
Jobs in the sector have an average wage of £44,600 compared to the national average of £35,400. Dr Evans, local MP for the area, says this is “thanks to the work from the team of 1,800+ people at Caterpillar and other businesses in our area that are leading the way on innovation and sustainability, right here in Desford. Many people simply aren’t aware we have one of the biggest companies in the world based right here in our area, researching, building and testing advance building equipment that is then shipped across the world, which is fantastic!”
Dr Luke Evans, Member of Parliament for Bosworth, said “It was a real pleasure to welcome the Minister of State for Business and Trade to Caterpillar in Desford to show her some of the development and manufacturing happening right now, bringing jobs and investment to our community.
“Caterpillar is the world’s leading manufacturer of construction equipment, having their site here means local people get high value, cutting edge jobs, and with it an exciting future. This is good for the UK and the people of Hinckley and Bosworth.
“The Midlands is brimming with economic and strategic potential thanks to businesses like Caterpillar who continue to invest tens of millions of pounds into making our area the perfect place to grow their business.”
