Pictured at the 50th birthday of the Jaguar E-Type are (left
to right) Ian Burnett, Jaguar Cars Ltd, John Rider, IoD West
Midlands, John Phillips, IoD West Midlands, Grant McPherson, Jaguar
Cars Ltd, and Andrew Main Wilson, IoD
A leading Midlands businessman has praised Jaguar Land Rover for
maintaining "the aura"surrounding its cars.
John Phillips, Institute of Directors' regional director, was
speaking after nearly 100 IoD members visited the group's Castle
Bromwich factory in Birmingham for a presentation by operations
director Grant McPherson.
The occasion was the 50th anniversary of the famous E-Type.
Mr Phillips said: "It is amazing how Jaguar has maintained the
'wow' factor. It has consistently managed to come up with the most
majestic of designs.
"They have continued to add to the technology while keeping the
magic. It is a special mix."
And he hailed the company's recent announcement of a new
£355 million engine plant at the i54 site near Wolverhampton
including the creation of 750 new jobs, possibly leading to up to
ten times that in the supply chain.
He went on: "They continue to go from strength to strength. It
is a great success story.
"They are a model to us all in terms of their products and
commitment to exports. If we had a few more companies like JLR in
the region all our worries would be over."
The IoD delegation was led by regional chairman John Rider and
the institute's chief operating officer Andrew Main Wilson.
The E-Type was launched in 1961, became the darling of the
swinging Sixties generation, and by the time it ceased production
in 1972 a total of 72,000 had been built.