Aston Martin Owners Club Visit CAI

The distinctive throb and rumble of wonderful Aston Martin engines filled the air around the CAI manufacturing facility on Friday 7th April 2017. Members of the Aston Martin Owners Club had driven up to Abercrave to learn about the history of SMITHS and Aston Martin and see how gauges for classic and new cars are designed and manufactured.

The Aston Martin Owners Club were in South Wales for their Spring 2017 Concours being held at the Aston Martin Lagonda's new facility at RAF St Athan, near Cardiff, on Sunday 9th April.

SMITHS Instruments has a rich history with Aston Martin and SMITHS gauges feature in many of the classic models. During the tour of the CAI facility, the Aston Martin owners were shown how gauges for classic Aston Martin cars are still manufactured today, using the same drawings, jigs and fixtures as used on the original Instruments.

The Aston Martin enthusiasts were also shown how modern electronic gauges are made. This included electronic gauges designed to replace original gauges in classic cars.

During the visit, Neil Meakin (Sales and Marketing Director) talked about the history of SMITHS and CAI. The group were then taken into the production area by Denver Lewis (Mechanical Design Engineer) who explained about the introduction of modern manufacturing techniques to improve quality and production techniques. Our Design Engineer, Dave Belton showed the visitors the print shop and explained how the introduction of new dial printing technology is proving to be particularly beneficial when designing modern gauge faces for today's high performance cars and motorcycles.

Gavin Roberts (Managing Director) talked about new projects for high performance sports cars, showing prototypes and drawings.

"This was a fantastic opportunity to show Aston Martin owners how classic gauges are designed and made," said Gavin Roberts. "During the tour there were lots of questions and it was just great to be talking to true motoring enthusiasts."