BRITISH Army tanks will run on North-East tracks after a company secured a £30m deal.

Cook Defence Systems, in Stanhope, County Durham, is making parts for the next generation Ajax fighting vehicle – just weeks after bosses told The Northern Echo they were targeting the contract.

The firm beat a German rival to the lucrative agreement, which will support 115 jobs in the region.

The contract is another major coup for the business, which last year unveiled a £70m four-year agreement with the Ministry of Defence (MoD) to supply tracks for tanks including the Challenger and Warrior.

The 42-tonne Ajax, of which 589 will be built by General Dynamics UK in a former Wales forklift factory, will form the backbone of the MoD’s new so-called Strike Brigades, with officials hailing its advanced battlefield intelligence and surveillance prowess.

Cook has already started making tracks at its Stanhope base, with shipping expected to begin in the summer and full production due to be underway by next year.

William Cook, Cook Defence Systems’ general manager, told The Northern Echo the business secured the work after convincing General Dynamics its tracks were far better than those supplied by German rival, Diehl.

He said: “We won this contract despite stiff international competition and I’m pleased a global defence operator like General Dynamics can still rely on a British manufacturer to get the best for the British Army.

“We had to prove what we had was technically superior and that it met the customer’s requirements for a lightweight, high-durability track system that was better than the German design.

“It’s a feeling of relief; we’ve worked hard for more than five years to win this contract and that has finally paid off.

“We are bringing back to Britain work that was originally at risk of going overseas.

“Although the value is less than the £70m deal, it is for the next-generation of armoured fighting vehicles, so is much more important in the long-term.

“The £70m deal was for ‘more of the same’, this is for a completely new product.”

Cook makes all the tracks for the MoD, including new runners and spares, and Mr Cook said its contract for the Ajax, which is due to come into service in 2019, will allow the company to target new work and strengthen its Stanhope factory to secure jobs and apprenticeships.

He said: “This will sustain jobs rather than create new ones, but it gives a lot of security for the people here.

“However, at the very least it allows us to think about taking on more apprentices and give more training to the workers.”

Mr Cook added the business has also spent hundreds of thousands of pounds on new tools to carry out the Ajax contract, which he said will provide further scope to deliver future deals.

Speaking last year, Andrew Cook, the company’s chairman, told The Northern Echo it was committed to securing the Ajax.

He said: “The one big thing we have to win is the Ajax; we already have a track for it and are competing with a supplier.

“Our offering is superior, lighter and more durable, and when you consider the need to cut weight for transportation, our tracks can help get more troops on a plane.”

Cook has extensive experience of supplying tracks for tanks, with its equipment used by armies in Oman and the United Arab Emirates, while its Stanhope plant also supplies digging tools for Caterpillar’s large mining and construction vehicles.

Cook Defence Systems operates within William Cook Cast Products, which has factories in Sheffield and Leeds.