Back in Britain…back in Longton.  New enterprise to meet local and national transport and industry needs.

April 4th 2012, sees the launch of the new Longton Avia Truck company.  Based in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent, UK, the company is returning to British industrial roots by using British design expertise coupled with many UK sourced components, to give users a flexible, robust vehicle, tailored to the customer’s need, providing good value, good service and a nationwide network of outstanding maintenance backup.

Longton/Avia is a new competitor in the medium range UK truck market. The design of the vehicle is British, many of its components are British sourced and ultimately the assembly of the vehicle will be in Stoke-on-Trent.  In a strong partnership with Avia, Ashok Leyland, who are part of the Hinduja Automotive Group, Longton /Avia will have full benefit from the financial and technical support for developing continual development of new vehicle ranges for the U.K. and other markets,  incorporating the latest technologies, their aim being to lower operating costs, reduce emissions and to protect the environment. This will enable Longton Avia to develop and evolve into a significant player in the U.K. market.

Rob Flello MP for Stoke-on-Trent, South and Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Transport Freight Group said “This is such exciting news for Stoke on Trent as it will bring many new opportunities to the area and will give transport operators the ability to purchase a British designed and built, high specification vehicle..  It is anticipated that this initiative will assist in the regeneration of Stoke-on-Trent, ultimately ,not only from extra jobs, but by giving an extra boost to the existing automotive engineering industry, and be tangible support for the City Council’s strategy to  create prosperity and quality of life by design for the people who live and work here.”

Commercial Director Jonathan Dale said, “This is a business that will serve both the transport community and the local community well.  The time is ripe to bring together the skills we have in our workforce and to use those skills to enhance the range of medium sized trucks available to customers, all backed up by a national service network.”

“Stoke-on-Trent is proud of its engineering and industrial heritage. In 1928 one of the first successful diesel engined, heavy trucks was built here by Kerr Stuart whose  most famous employees was Reginald Mitchell, who designed the Supermarine Spitfire aircraft.  We believe that Longton Avia is moving forward by returning to its roots and creating a new engineering tradition in Longton.”