JCB's Tier 4 engine which goes into production next year.

JCB's new GBP31 million (USD48 million) engine development project will create about 350 jobs at its Midlands and Wales plants.

The project is expected to commence after the company was awarded GBP4.5 million (USD7 million) towards its cost from the government's Regional Growth Fund.

Research into the project will take place at JCB Power Systems in Foston, Derbyshire, where the company's JCB Dieselmax engine is manufactured.

The new engine which will be developed from the project is expected to be installed in JCB's own products and also sold to third parties. The development will create about 50 new advanced engineering jobs at JCB Power Systems, with recruitment already under way.

When the engine goes into production, over 300 additional jobs will be created in JCB's Staffordshire, Derbyshire and Wrexham factories between 2016 and 2021.

JCB CEO Alan Blake says: "Since we began production in 2004, JCB has led the way in off-highway engine development, with a range of fuel-saving, clean and highly efficient engines.

"The announcement that we now intend to invest GBP31 million (USD48 million) developing our next-generation engine is an important step in building on the success we have enjoyed so far and it will take the efficiency, productivity and environmental performance of our engines to new levels."

Blake says JCB anticipates the new engine to give its products a competitive edge and lead to "substantially increased sales" between 2016 and 2021.

"That rise in demand will result in the creation of an additional 300 positions at our UK factories in addition to almost 50 engineering roles we are recruiting for immediately," he adds.

JCB started manufacturing its Dieselmax engine range at its Derbyshire plant in 2004. (Forkliftaction.com News #142). This year, the company also opened a new engine production facility in India to make fuel-efficient engines for its Indian-built products (Forkliftaction.com News #507).

JCB's own engines now power more than 70% of the company's equipment range. Last year, JCB announced it had made one of the biggest investments in its history to develop the off-highway sector's cleanest engine, in readiness for increasingly stringent emissions legislation in both the USA and in Europe (Forkliftaction.com News #454).

According to JCB, the move has been well received by original equipment manufacturers worldwide, with a surge in demand for the award-winning JCB Ecomax T4 engine range.

The company has recently developed the new JCB Ecomax T4 4.4 L engine - the latest generation of the JCB Dieselmax engine (Forkliftaction.com News #504). JCB says the investment delivered an industry-first solution that eliminates the need for any exhaust after-treatment and delivers cost savings for customers.