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Ministerial visit to Lola

Minister for the East of England Barbara Follett visited Lola Group’s Huntingdon base to open a new factory floor recently.

Follett talked with Lola Group Managing Director Andrew Manahan about the innovative work being undertaken at Lola. Well-known for making race cars, Lola has also created unmanned aerial and underwater vehicles for companies such as BAE Systems and Thales and is developing sustainable energy projects such as a new style of wind turbine and harnessing tidal power.

She also praised the work of Sharon Hewison, manager of Lola’s composite engineering group, saying: “I’m so pleased to see women in roles like yours - not enough girls go into engineering.”

Mrs Follett said: “I am a real Star Trek fan so this is the sort of place I love to come to – it is all about the future. They have a very skilled workforce and are engaged in cutting-edge technologies. I am so proud of this facility. What they make here is very impressive – and very useful to the rest of the world.”

She praised the company’s 50th anniversary event last year – where Lola cars of all ages were paraded through the streets of Huntingdon – and suggested a similar event could be held periodically, which could also boost tourism to the town.

Mr Manahan said that building race cars is only a part of what the company now does. “We have diversified greatly in the past two years and now have a wide base.”

Mrs Follett is not the only Government Minister backing Lola’s work. Paul Drayson, Minister of Science in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, owns a Lola LMP1 Coupe, which he raced in the latter stages of the 2009 season with his own team, Drayson Racing.

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