QuEST Global Engineering Acquires Engineering Services Division Of GKN Aerospace

Online, December 2, 2011 (Newswire.com) - QuEST has acquired GKN Aerospace Engineering Services and entered into a long-term agreement to provide the engineering skills and resources to support GKN Aerospace's long term growth strategy. GKN Aerospace retains over 200 engineers and in so doing GKN will retain and continue to grow the core engineering skills necessary to lead future programmes and technology developments.

This sale to QuEST creates a powerful engineering specialist operation, able to operate as an effective strategic partner to GKN Aerospace and many other customers worldwide. It adds 290 skilled engineering personnel to the 2,800 professionals already employed by QuEST across their 18 global 'delivery centres'.

"This acquisition will enhance our engineering capability close to our customers in Europe. We are very pleased to bring rich engineering talent from UK and Australia as a result of acquiring this asset from GKN." said Ajit Prabhu, CEO, QuEST Global Engineering. "QuEST has been supporting GKN for the past several years as a preferred supplier and this move only reinforces our quality of delivery and confidence shown by GKN to our partnership. With this enhanced capability and our low cost centres in India using our unique local-global approach, we will be able to deliver high quality services at optimised costs to our aerospace and defence customers, especially in work streams such as design, stress, concessions, continuous product development and manufacturing engineering."

Phil Swash, President and CEO, Aerostructures Europe, GKN Aerospace comments: "This is a significant step in our strategic development. In forming this relationship with QuEST, we are playing to our mutual strengths. We are confident that QuEST has the necessary focus and critical mass in the engineering services sector to not only grow the existing business but also provide GKN Aerospace with flexible and cost effective access to the engineering skills necessary to support GKN Aerospace's ambitious growth strategy."

GKN Aerospace Engineering Services has provided skilled, stand-alone engineering support on aerospace and marine projects across military and civil sectors. Customers, including major companies such as AgustaWestland, Airbus, Boeing, BAE Systems, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Rolls-Royce and Sikorsky, as well as GKN Aerospace, have been assisted with maximising performance in areas such as product development, manufacturing efficiency and life cycle support.

QuEST Global Engineering has a Global Product Development framework that is anchored on a local-global approach to Product Engineering to ensure close co-operation between the customer teams and QuEST's Global teams. With a proven track record of 14 years of product engineering experience, the company has engaged with highly reputed global technology leaders in the field of aerospace & defence, aero engine, power generation, oil & gas, industrial machines, consumer goods and other vertical sectors.

Editor's Notes:
GKN plc is a global engineering business serving the automotive, aerospace and land systems markets. It has operations in more than 30 countries, around 40,000 employees in subsidiaries and joint ventures and sales of GBP5.4 billion in the year to 31 December 2010. GKN plc is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE: GKN).

GKN Aerospace is the aerospace operation of GKN plc, serving a global customer base and operating in North and South America, Australia, the Asia Pacific and Europe. With sales of GBP1.5bn, the business is focused around three major product areas - aerostructures, propulsion systems and transparencies, plus a number of specialist products - electro-thermal ice protection, fuel and flotation systems, and bullet resistant glass. The business is equally split along military and civil lines with significant participation on all major aircraft programmes today. GKN Aerospace is a major supplier of complex composite structures; offers one of the most comprehensive capabilities in high performance metallics processing and is the world leading supplier of cockpit transparencies and passenger cabin windows.

QuEST Global Engineering is a diversified Engineering Services company, employing 2,800 professionals across 18 global delivery centers. The company helps customers in Aero engines, Aerospace & Defense, Power Generation, Oil & Gas, Industrial Machines, Consumer Goods and other verticals to cut product development and project costs, shorten lead times, extend capacity and maximize engineering resources availability by providing support across the complete product life cycle. We leverage our local presence and global reach to support engineering cost reduction initiatives for our customers. More information is available at: http://engineering.quest-global.com

For further information, please contact:
Sandra Fearon, Public Affairs Manager, GKN Aerospace
Tel: +44 (0)1983 283649 Mobile: +44 (0)7767 334804
Email: [email protected]
Press releases can also be found on the website: www.gknaerospace.com
Sweta Patra, Head - Marketing & Communications, QuEST
Tel: +91 (80) 41190900 Mobile: +91-9611103646
Email: [email protected]