UK production starts for Infiniti Q30
First new car brand to be manufactured on this scale in the UK in 23 years
First Infiniti vehicle built in Europe, expanding global manufacturing footprint
£250m investment, new facilities and 300 new jobs
First vehicles to be exported from Sunderland to the USA and China
UK production of Infiniti Q30 starts today in Sunderland, as the first vehicle officially rolled off the British assembly line.
The big day coincided with news that the Q30 has won a five-star Euro NCAP rating.
Following a £250m investment that has created 300 new jobs, Infiniti’s first compact model, the Q30, is also the brand’s first vehicle made in Europe. As part of its global growth plan, Infiniti vehicles are now built in five plants in four countries on three continents.
Trevor Mann, chief performance officer of parent Nissan Motor Corporation, joined Roland Krueger, president of Infiniti Motor Company, and the 6,700-strong workforce in Sunderland to mark the latest milestone in Infiniti’s global expansion.
Infiniti Q30 five-star Euro NCAP rating
As well as achieving the maximum five stars, the Infiniti Q30 gained top scores in each of the four testing categories.
Occupant protection scored highly in the rigorous test program with an 84% rating for adult safety.
For Pedestrian Protection, the Q30 scored 91%
An 81% score in the Safety Assist category was due to the latest safety technologies of Infiniti’s acclaimed Safety Shield system
Mann says: “Today we are beginning an exciting new chapter in the Infiniti story, and I can’t think of a better place to start than here at Nissan’s Sunderland plant. Over its 30-year history, Sunderland has grown into the UK’s largest automotive plant. It is renowned for delivering high-quality, top-selling vehicles, and is regarded as a world-class production facility with a highly skilled and dedicated work force.
“To prepare for Q30 production, we invested £250m here in the UK. This is creating more than 1,000 new jobs in the UK automotive industry. Q30 production is further strengthening our premium vehicle manufacturing capability in Sunderland, and exports to global markets such as China and North America signal the next phase in the expansion of Infiniti and a new chapter for our UK plant.”
The decision to build the Q30 in the UK was made in 2012 in recognition of the outstanding quality standards reached by the workforce in Sunderland over many years. Since then, the plant’s journey to Infiniti has created a new generation of premium car builders, with an unprecedented training programme for 4,000 staff in the requirements and expectations of Infiniti customers.
Attention to detail for the Sunderland Infiniti Q30
New production facilities covering 25,000m2 at the Sunderland plant include a 100%-automated body shop, where 134 new robots with laser-welding precision have been installed to build a highly rigid bodyshell, one of the reasons that sound levels in the Q30’s cabin are exceptionally low.
After the Q30 is welded, it is integrated onto the plant’s Line 2 for painting and final assembly, where a second plant extension of 14,500m2 has been built. The manufacturing process has been tailored to ensure every Q30 is made for the individual at the Trim & Chassis shop where the Infiniti operators perform 1,191 different tasks to complete each model.
Roland Krueger says: “This new active compact will play a vital role in our strategy to become a top tier global premium brand.”
Instrumental in the development of the Infiniti Q30 were the brand’s European design and technical centres in Paddington and Cranfield, respectively. With an expanding network of Infiniti Retail Centres in the UK, the introduction of Q30 manufacturing in Sunderland demonstrates the brand’s strong commitment to the UK.
The new Infiniti Q30 in the trim and chassis scrutiny section of the Sunderland plant
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