MANUFACTURING business Thorn Lighting is build a multi-million pound factory, safeguarding jobs for the foreseeable future, The Northern Echo has learned.

Thorn, which has a factory in Spennymoor, County Durham, employing about 700 people, said the factory could be built by 2008.

Thorn took hundreds of workers to the Hardwick Hall Hotel, in Sedgefield, on Wednesday, so the the entire workforce could hear the announcement at the same time.

Thorn is owned by Austrian company Zumtobel AG, which has sites across Europe and in China.

Yesterday, Thorn Lighting operations director David Johnston said: "We announced to the workforce that the company has obtained the option to purchase land on the Green Lane Industrial Estate to build a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility that safeguards employment for the foreseeable future.

"We will close our current building and move to a brand new site.

"The current site isn't laid out in the most efficient way, so moving will mean we will reduce operational costs.

"This is a clear sign from our group that they are committed to the future of Spennymoor because they want to build a brand new facility.

"The UK is our biggest lighting market and is a very important part of the overall group business, so a UK manufacturing facility is vital to support that.

"We also have a growing market in the UK, so things are looking up."

The Green Lane estate, in Spennymoor, is also home to Black and Decker, which announced in 2002 that it was axing 950 jobs.

Thorn's head of human resources Joan Goodwin said: "This is like a phoenix from the ashes in manufacturing terms.

"Thorn's factory has seen a significant turnaround in the past four years, and we are now one of the best sites in the group."

Unions and staff also reacted warmly to the news yesterday.

Cathie Bainbridge, site convenor for the Amicus union, said: "I think everybody was gobsmacked when we found out - in a good way.

"We have to react to be quicker and better, and with the management and unions working together, we can ensure that Thorn is going to be here for the next 15 to 20 years at least.

"We have a flexible workforce here and that has given us a competitive advantage over Europe."

About 100 workers from sister company Tridonic Atco, which is based on the Thorn site, will also move to the new factory.