It is surrounded by a moat and
a distinctive, buff sandstone frontage gives it the appearance of a latter
day castle. But the low and compact development screened by 700 acres
of landscaped, rolling English countryside holds the key to the future
of Aston Martin, the sports car manufacturer celebrating its 90th anniversary
this year.
Just opened, the impressive new building forms the major component of
an ambitious plan to transform a cottage industry into a major force in
the rapidly expanding global market for exotic transport.
By the end of the first quarter, the most advanced hand-assembled sports
car line in the world will begin driving Aston Martin toward the higher
volume levels it needs to achieve for it to become a stand-alone profit
centre for US parent company Ford.
“It’s all very well having an exclusive brand, but we need
to be more visible and we need to be profitable. That means making an
average of 5,000 cars per year,” said chief executive officer Dr
Ulrich Bez.
During a preview of the new facility, built alongside the headquarters
of sister PAG brands Land Rover and Jaguar at Gaydon in the Midlands,
Bez told Automotive Engineer: “We have come a long way in the last
decade. Back in the early 1990s, this company was facing a disaster because
it was making the wrong product at the wrong time. In 1993, it produced
only 43 cars.
“The next year, the DB7 was introduced and started our revival.
It had a major effect on the number of cars we sold and output reached
700. Production fell a little in 1998 and 1999, but rose again with the
introduction of our 12-cylinder engine.
“From 2001, when we launched the Vanquish, we have been making 1,500
cars a year – 1,000 DB7 and 500 Vanquish – and operating flat
out. It has been impossible for us to produce another single unit either
at Bloxham, the DB7 factory, or at Newport Pagnell.”
The need to lift output means Bloxham, the former Jaguar XJ220 factory
operated by Tom Walkinshaw, has been sold and DB7 production ended. A
similar fate awaits the Newport Pagnell factory after Vanquish production
ceases there in about five years’ time – which means Gaydon
is now the hub of Aston Martin and will be home to every new model in
future.
Now ramping up for the DB9 Coupe, the new facility will soon start producing
the Volante convertible version just revealed at the North American International
Auto Show in Detroit and due to be launched in the fourth quarter.
“We will retain a presence in Newport Pagnell because we will retain
our Works Service there. As it handles more than 2,000 cars each year
for servicing and any bespoke modifications required by customers, this
is a busy department that will maintain our link with our spiritual home.
“But Gaydon is of extreme importance to our long term strategy.
It’s the first new factory ever for Aston Martin and it has been
designed from the ground up to transform the company and its product range.
It represents a fantastic opportunity,” said Bez.
At the heart of the transformation is the VH Platform (vertical-horizontal)
strategy being introduced with the DB9, the successor to the DB7, Aston’s
backbone for a decade and, after more than 7,000 sales, its most popular
model so far. Unique to PAG’s exclusive sports car brand, it uses
extruded aluminium and is set to provide the basis for every product for
at least the next 15 years.
Said Bez: “VH will carry the DB9 Volante, the AM V8 Vantage in the
next two years and the convertible version in 2006, then the Vanquish
replacement. It will also be the platform for further special Zagato products
that we started with the DB7.
“It’s basically very simple. With extruded aluminium, you
can make cuts, move components, lengthen the wheelbase, change overhang
and do many things. Apart from two common constituents to the platform
– the windscreen and bulkhead, plus the rear bulkhead – everything
else can be changed.
“This will allow us to tremendous flexibility for the future. We
will be able to make a quick response to market requirements, do small
numbers of models and special runs of cars. We could make an estate –
who knows, we could even make a four door saloon and revive the Lagonda
name one day.”
An integral part of VH is making use of expertise across all PAG brands.
Explains Bez:: “Rather than sharing various bits and pieces, the
rationale is to share services and knowledge, which we think is really
quite smart. For example, we can go to Volvo for help in developing a
safety system and Jaguar can help us develop rapid prototyping.
“We have 170 engineers at Gaydon, but we have access globally to
35,000 engineers through Ford and eight proving grounds. We can go to
Alaska and Australia if we want – we certainly couldn’t have
had facilities like these as an independent unit.”
It is surrounded by a moat and
a distinctive, buff sandstone frontage gives it the appearance of a latter
day castle. But the low and compact development screened by 700 acres
of landscaped, rolling English countryside holds the key to the future
of Aston Martin, the sports car manufacturer celebrating its 90th anniversary
this year.