Job hopes as Cobra UK clinches deal

Dozens of jobs could be created at a Shropshire firm after it secured multi-million pound orders for a new product.

Cobra UK, which employs 72 people in Whitchurch and at a new facility in Welshpool, has landed a double contract to supply innovative boot floors to General Motors and specialist car maker Fiskar.

The two contracts total £20million and could mean the company taking on an extra 50 people at its two sites.

The special floors are considerably lighter than rival products and help boost a car's efficiency and cut emissions.

The success is the latest stage in a turnaround for the car parts company which saw its order book shrink by 90 per cent after the economic downturn struck.

Gary Seale, managing director of Cobra UK, put the achievement down to investment in its research and development facilities, and said: "It has taken nearly three years to develop and bring to market, but we are now in a position where we have a product that offers significant cost and performance benefits that many global customers are crying out for."

The company has grown from a turnover of just £300,000, and has also won a £56 million contract to supply the car industry in Thailand, Brazil and Indonesia.