UK companies to help plot ‘constellation’ of satellites around the Moon May 20, 2021 UK space companies have begun developing navigation and telecommunication capabilities to put a ‘constellation’ of satellites around the Moon, according to the European Space Agency (ESA) today. With funding from the UK Space Agency, Surrey Satellite Technology Limited (SSTL), Inmarsat and MDA Space and Robotics have bagged £2m contracts with the ESA for the satellite [...]
Airbus to shut a Spanish production plant May 19, 2021 Airbus SE have announced plans to merge the activities of its two plants in Spain since the end of the production of A380 superjumbos has left the factories without enough work to sustain them both. The French company has already held discussions with the Spanish government and unions and aims to avoid forced layoffs, according [...]
Jaguar Land Rover sinks to a loss after new CEO’s £1.5bn strategy reset May 18, 2021 Jaguar Land Rover sinks to a loss after new CEO's £1.5bn strategy reset
Rocket debris racing for Earth, expected to arrive tomorrow May 7, 2021 Debris falling from a Chinese rocket is expected to land on Earth tomorrow, amid concerns it could cause damage upon re-entry into the atmosphere. A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin urged today that most of the debris will be burned up on re-entry and is highly unlikely to cause any harm. The Defence Department [...]
German e-car boom will hit 178,000 workers unless companies focus on re-skilling May 6, 2021 The electric cars boom will hit 178,000 workers in Germany unless companies gear up efforts to re-skill their employees, a report has shown today. The country’s auto industry will suffer more employees retiring than the labour market can keep up within the coming years, the Ifo institute said. With battery-driven cars requiring less assembly work [...]
Reopening of showrooms boosts new car sales in April May 5, 2021 The reopening of England’s car showrooms boosted sales of new vehicles in April, prompting the car industry to hail the “light at the end of the tunnel” after lockdown. In total, 141,583 new vehicles were registered last month, a thirty-fold jump on the same month a year ago, when the initial coronavirus lockdown all but [...]
UK PMIs: Manufacturing growth hits 27-year high in April May 4, 2021 The UK’s manufacturing growth gathered pace in April as production increased for the 11th consecutive month. The IHS Markit/CIPS UK Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index rose to 60.9 per cent last month, marking the highest reading since 1994. The reading also came in ahead of a flash estimate of 60.7. The growth was driven by a [...]
Car production rise for first time since 2019 after Covid collapse April 29, 2021 UK car production rose dramatically in March, a year after the coronavirus pandemic forced factories across the country to shut. Output rose 46.6 per cent against 12 months ago, with a total of 115,498 cars built, up from 78,767 in March 2020, new data from auto trade body the SMMT showed. However, the figure is [...]
Driverless cars set for UK roads by the end of the year April 28, 2021 Britain’s roads could see their first driverless cars by the end of the year after the Department for Transport gave an autonomous driving system the green light today. Officials said that the technology could improve road safety by reducing human error, which contributes to over 85 per cent of accidents. In a statement this morning, [...]
Lotus to invest £2bn in switch to electric and revamp of UK plant April 28, 2021 Sports car maker Lotus will build electric vehicles in the UK as part of a £2bn investment push aimed at massively increasing its production capacity. The Hethel-based firm yesterday announced that it would switch to selling only electric cars by 2028. Its last combustion engine car, the Emira, will launch this summer. As part of [...]
