Locally made Range Rover Evoque ready for rollout

Workers assembling Land Rover vehicles in the Halewood factory in the UK, where the first locally built model Range Rover Evoque originated. [Provided to China Daily]

From Halewood in the United Kingdom to Changshu, Jiangsu province, it took only two years for the debut of Jaguar Land Rover's first locally built vehicle in China.

The Range Rover Evoque will roll off the production line at the Changshu plant of Chery Jaguar Land Rover Automotive Co Ltd on Oct 21, two years after the joint venture announced its establishment in November 2012.

"Chery Jaguar Land Rover strives to be a leading automotive manufacturer to inspire excellence in China's premium car market," said Chris Bryant, president of the venture.

"We will provide Chinese consumers with world-class Jaguar, Land Rover and joint venture-branded vehicles."

The fourth foreign premium automotive brand with local production in China, Jaguar Land Rover and its Chinese partner Chery invested 10.9 billion yuan ($1.78 billion) to make Changshu the first manufacturing base for Jaguar Land Rover outside the UK, as well as the birthplace of a new joint venture brand.

With a state-of-the-art R&D facility included in the facility, planned production capacity for the first phase will be 130,000 units a year.

"This year is the most important year for Chery Jaguar Land Rover. We have strong confidence to achieve all our goals. Our plant opening and the launch of the first locally built vehicle demonstrate our determination and confidence to succeed in China's premium automobile market," said Zhu Guohua, deputy president of the joint venture.

He said the Range Rover Evoque has been a successful model since its debut in Halewood in 2011. Currently, one in three Jaguar Land Rovers sold is a Range Rover Evoque.

Jaguar Land Rover now has three vehicle assembly plants, one engine plant and two product development facilities in the UK for the current 11 vehicle lines, which the company plans to extend in the near future.

According to Danella Bagnell, vehicle architecture planning director, the company will invest 3.5 billion pounds ($5.6 billion) in new product creation and capital expenditures over the next financial year.

Further expansion

Operating in 170 countries with 18 national sales companies, 74 importers and 54 export partners, Jaguar Land Rover now delivers its vehicles through 2,520 dealerships. It plans to expand the distribution network by 26 percent to 3,100 by 2016.

The company also aims to increase its dealer numbers from the current 150 to more than 200 on the Chinese mainland, going to more third-and fourth-tier cities, both for imported and locally produced models.

"As part of our strategic global growth plans, we will introduce 50 new products or updates over the next five years," said Bagnell.

With more than 80 percent of the vehicles it produces in the UK exported overseas, Jaguar Land Rover has made clear its ambitions to expand its international manufacturing footprint and increase production in markets outside the UK.

"2014 is absolutely pivotal in our beginning to realize these ambitions, and the first milestone will be the opening of Chery Jaguar Land Rover," said Bagnell.

Zhang Meng, Chery Jaguar Land Rover's business office director, explained that "in the initial phase, Chery is simply an investor".

"The joint venture will completely follow the production and quality control systems of Jaguar Land Rover."

Highest standards

Using the example of its Halewood factory－which received the JD Power European Gold Plant Award－its Changshu production plant is built in line with the highest international standards from the very first cornerstone, said Zhang.

Equipped with top international-standard press, body, paint, trim and final detailing shops－along with an engine plant－the Changshu operation is one of the world's most advanced and efficient manufacturing facilities.

Zhang said Chery Jaguar Land Rover's quality center further assures world-class quality.

"Inheriting pure British lineage, equipped with the world's leading manufacturing facilities and integrated advanced processes, Chery Jaguar Land Rover implements global standards and management systems, and together with industry-leading partners, strives to provide Chinese consumers with the premium brand experience that they desire," said Zhang.

Though present in the Chinese market for only 10 years, Jaguar Land Rover has made the country its long-term strategic market.

In the first half of the year, the British company sold 62,479 Jaguar and Land Rover vehicles in China that contributed 48 percent of its global six-month growth.