Armoured car firm's jobs joy
A company that makes armoured patrol vehicles for use in Iraq and Afghanistan was today celebrating an expansion that will create 30 new jobs.
MacNeillie is set to add to its 300-strong workforce as it supplies the British Army in the war-torn countries.
With a new hospital transport vehicle also just launched, the Walsall company says it is looking for auto electricians, skilled vehicle technicians, vehicle fitters and fabricators to work at its Stockton Close factory.
Just days ago the firm was showing off its new MACS - Military Armoured Carrier System - to senior Army officers and politicans at the UK's major defence vehicle exhibition at Millbrook, in Bedfordshire.
MacNeillie engineers have combined an armoured bodyshell with commercial off-the-shelf 4x4 engineering and a Mercedes-Benz engine to produce a vehicle able to carry a driver, commander and up to seven troops with full battle kit and weapons.
The MACS can also be equipped with appliqué armour and special V-shaped belly plates and wheel-arch protection to defend the vehicle against Improves Explosive Devices (IEDs), such as roadside bombs. But MacNeillie has still been able to keep the vehicle's weight down so it can be lifted by a Chinook transport helicopter.
MacNeillie engineering director, Chris Taylor said the military wanted a vehicle that could be used both in combat theatres and on peacekeeping missions: "We believe that the new MACS vehicle system offers a practical and cost-effective way to cover both operational requirements - with one vehicle concept, upgradeable as required."
Earlier this week Mr Taylor demonstrated the MACS to senior army officers and Lord Drayson, Minister of State for Defence Equipment & Support, at the Bedfordshire defence event.
Meanwhile, in the last few days, MacNeillie has had an enthusiastic reception to its new transport ambulance at a major healthcare vehicle event at Harrogate. Based on a Renault Master minibus the all-new Patient Transfer Service (PTS) vehicle is the result of £300,000 worth of research and development at MacNeillie's Walsall base.
The vehicle would provide a hospital mini-bus service, for instance transporting outpatients and the elderly.
By Simon Penfold
