Huge investment plans for major Burnley company

International aerospace company Safran Nacelles Ltd has named Michael Rigalle as new managing director.

The company has also announced it plans to invest £12m. into its Burnley site over the next four years.

Mr Rigalle will lead the UK site of Safran Nacelles in Burnley, which is responsible for the design, development and manufacture of nacelles for a wide range of aircraft – from the business jets to large commercial aircraft.

He said: “I’m delighted to have been appointed managing director of Safran Nacelles Ltd in Burnley; a site that is central to the success of Safran Nacelles with its vast knowledge in operations, programmes and engineering.

“It’s an exciting time for Burnley as we are investing £12m. in the site over the next four years to enhance our manufacturing capabilities and ensure we successfully increase the rate of production on the Airbus A320neo and A330neo.

“We will also continue to utilise our expertise in engineering design, quality, composite and component manufacturing, and final assembly for our other programmes such as the Trent 700 thrust reversers and the HTF7000 thrust reversers, for which we are a worldwide centre of excellence.

“Having seen the talented workforce here, I know that these challenges will be met with enthusiasm and delivered to the highest standard.”

Safran currently employs around 750 people at its Burnley site, making it one of the biggest private sector employers in the borough, and has taken on 89 apprentices in five years in partnership with Burnley College.

Aerospace manufacturing has taken place on the site for 70 years.