WG774

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/m...de/7073682.stm



I could go on about ex-RR technicians that I've met over the years working in industries far detached from the production of aero engines...but I won't.

airship

That's a real bummer, even if I does said it meself...

candoo

Sad news but Bootle is (was) involved mostly in land based gas turbines, competition here is especially tough.

Sadly Rolls is suffering through a general slump in Aviation business so losing this part of the business makes more sense than making cutbacks in their core business of aero engines.

It is interesting that the slowdown in the market up to two months ago was blamed on the A380 fiasco, now we hear it is all down to problems with the dreamliner.

You can buy a Trent 900 engine off the shelf from RR at the moment, if you happen to need one that is!

Howard Hughes

Rolls Royce? Merseyside?

It seems a contradiction to me anyway...

WG774

200 jobs isn't at the top of the Richter scale I suppose. The whole scenario grates with me because I've met ex-RR engineers that were laid off, and had to take up mundane jobs which they were way over qualified to do...

Personally, I find it a bit depressing when you meet someone who served a long apprenticeship at RR, specialising in aero engines, and they have to make a crust replacing car exhausts... I wouldn't have known unless I'd asked. I got a bit suspicious when I noticed how quiet and methodical the chap was. "You seem a lot more professional than the average bloke at Kwik Fit" - "Thanks, I trained at RR"

ZeBedie

Yes, Rolls are lucky enough to employ some of the very best people in British industry. It's sad that manufacturing jobs are being lost at a higher rater now than they ever were under Thatcher.

What is even more sad is that the media seem to be oblivious to the tragedy.

ChrisVJ

"It is because of the value of the pound against the dollar."

I am tired of hearing this untrue excuse trotted out over and over again. People are doing it here too. There may be some small truth in it when we talk of raw commodities but when we are talking about complex manufactured goods it just is not true.

Back in the sixties the Mark went from 10 to the pound to about 4 in just three or four years. Mercedes and BMW were just emerging from major slumps and were hardly ever seen in the UK. The pundits were all saying that the German car makers would never get a foothold in the UK because of their labour costs and the exchange rate. (I remember paying the equivalent of a meal for two just to buy a beer at Frankfurt airport.)

Yeah, right!

It is about perceived value. If the RR engines were seen as more up to date, more reliable and more efficient then customers would pay the extra. We all make those choices every day. People bought BMWs and Mercedes in huge quantity when they were perceived to be better products than those produced by the likes of British Leyland etc

Just as an aside, that does not look like a Turbine to me, let alone a power utility type turbine, looks more like a 100hp marine diesel. Don't you just hate it when an uninformed editor picks the wrong stock picture?