JCB to invest £20m after sales lift
Staffordshire-based JCB has pledged to inject £20m in its UK plants after earnings soared 149 per cent in 2010.
Sales also increased by nearly half (48 per cent) to £2bn over the year-long period.
The digger manufacturer, which secured earnings of £235m, said the investment was being made to keep up with a rise in demand from emerging markets.
JCB said demand had surged from countries including Brazil, Russia, India and China.
The company also has plans to recruit 50 more engineers to its UK plants.
Sales in the UK and Ireland were up by about 20 per cent over the 2010 financial year.
During the recession, JCB axed almost 1,800 staff as construction schemes across the world were halted or disbanded. However, staffing levels have now returned to the pre-recession levels of 9,000.
Chief executive Alan Blake said: "British manufacturing has a quality reputation around the world. We are successfully manufacturing in the UK and selling around the world, and we think the UK is a good place to do business, with a hugely skilled workforce."
JCB's main UK sites are located in Cheadle near Stoke-on-Trent, Rugeley in Staffordshire, Wrexham and Foston near Derby.
Last month, JCB announced it would invest in its global operations by constructing a new factory in Brazil.
