Aston Martin’s Welsh SUV factory is taking shape

In typically MI6-style lingo, Aston Martin has announced that ‘Phase I of its new St Athan manufacturing facility is now complete'. Now, pay attention, 007. The factory isn't snipping the ribbon just yet. 

Phase I of Aston’s St Athan project involved creating smart new reception areas to welcome important Aston Martin customers and suppliers, staff receptions, offices, and the restaurant that’ll fuel the new generation of Aston Martin engineers responsible. Important stuff. Apparently 3,000 applications have been submitted for the 750 new jobs being created. 

Looks smart, doesn’t it? Quite the transformation for what was, as of February 2016, a dilapidated ex-RAF base in a windswept corner of South Wales. Wonder if Maranello and Sant’Agata are jealous?

So, what’s Phase II?  Well, it’s already underway. The three hangars, which once housed Tornado jet fighters, are in the process of being converted into state of the art manufacturing facilities – which will disgorge the first Aston Martin SUV in 2019. You might remember Top Gear went for a, erm, assessment of the new space last year, in some of Aston’s greatest hits. Hopefully the tyremarks have been scrubbed off by now...

Aston Martin boss Andy Palmer is rightly pleased about St Athan’s emerging potential: “The St Athan facility is really starting to take shape. With the completion of this first phase, it is another milestone on our journey in Wales, and an important part of Aston Martin’s Second Century Plan.

“Work is also well underway on phase II, the rest of the Aston Martin team and I are excited for when St Athan joins our Gaydon and Newport Pagnell facilities as a centre of hand-crafted manufacturing excellence," he added.

Sounds like a very good news story for the British car industry to us.