JOBS JOY FOR TOWN AS FIRM MOVES IN

RICHARD AUTY 14:00 - 07 May 2003 TheAre was jobs joy today for redundancy-hit Gorseinon after a London-based company confirmed it was moving its entire operation to the town. Comyn Ching (Solray) Ltd, a 280-year-old family-owned manufacturing business will move into a purpose-built 26,000 square foot unit on the Garngoch Industrial Estate.

The multi-million pound investment is being officially announced tomorrow at a turf-turning ceremony. Regeneration chiefs say it is a symbol of the new optimism in Gorseinon and the surrounding area after a run of devastating job losses. The biggest, in June 2001, saw all 127 jobs at Corus's Bryngwyn plant go when it closed its doors for good.

This followed job losses at 3M and Valeo in the town. Some 500 jobs in total disappeared in Gorseinon through cuts and closures. But now, thanks to the Gorseinon Regeneration Trust and the WDA, jobs are starting to be created, mainly on the Garngoch Industrial Estate. It is hoped the total number of jobs there will be close to the number lost at Bryngwyn.

Gorseinon regeneration coordinator Beth Winkley said: "I think it's a huge boost for Gorseinon because not only is it providing new jobs, it's also bringing confidence to the area. It is saying that this is a good area to site your business. "It is very much a partnership between the Gorseinon Development Trust and the WDA. "Hopefully with people now being in employment, they will have more money in their pockets to spend in local shops."

But as the second anniversary of the plant closure approaches, many former workers have not been able to find work. Ex-Bryngwyn employee Keith Yates said: "I haven't seen a lot of change in Gorseinon. "About three of us got jobs at Visteon and a few relocated to the Corus plant at Trostre. "But we have been the lucky ones - those who have managed to get work are in very poorly paid jobs. "I've lost touch with a lot of them since Bryngwyn closed." Solray is the UK's leading brand of radiant heating panels.

Managing director of the relocating London firm, Alistair Comyn Ching, will meet Swansea's Lord Mayor June Burtonshaw, AMs, councillors and WDA staff at tomorrow's ceremony.