Prince William, the Duke of Cambridge, today visited Triumph’s headquarters in Hinckley, Leicestershire, opening the factory’s visitor centre and checking out the company’s brand new, £6 million paint shop.
The duke toured the factory, where around half of Triumph’s annual production of 67,000 motorcycles are assembled, meeting with workers and assisting by placing a badge on a Tiger 1200 engine. His visit also included a trip to the new paint facility, which is set to open in the coming months, before he headed over to the factory visitor centre, where he unveiled a commemorative fuel tank painted in the colours of the union flag.
Nick Bloor, CEO of the family owned Triumph Motorcycles company, showed the royal entourage around the facilities and later said: “It was a delight to welcome His Royal Highness to Hinckley.
“Thanks to the dedication and hard work of everyone at Triumph, our export business continues to grow and our outstanding design engineering team, in which we have invested heavily in recent years, is producing a stream of exciting motorcycles that captures the imagination of riders all over the world.”
The royal is a keen motorcyclist and, along with his brother, famously rode across Africa for charity. Despite no longer riding on the road, he took a quick spin on a new Tiger 1200 before heading off to the nearby MIRA proving grounds, a world class vehicle research and development facility where a number of cars and bikes undergo rigorous preproduction testing.
