WORKERS at Cummins factory in Darlington are putting the finishing touches to the one millionth mid-range engine to be made at the site.

The milestone marks a dramatic turnaround in fortunes for the plant which suffered a torrid time during the recession as 440 workers were made redundant.

Since 2009 the business has implemented major changes to its working practices, invested millions of pounds in new machinery and recruited hundreds of staff to meet rising demand. It is on target to hit record sales this year.

The Yarm Road plant exports about 60 per cent of its output to more than 200 customers in 53 countries and it has become a leading light in the green transport sector.

Plant manager Mike McCabe said: "This is a significant milestone for the plant. It took 22 years to get to 750,000 engines but only another 4 to reach 1 million. Our employees should be proud of this achievement given the challenging economic conditions that we have faced over the last few years. This is as much a recognition of their efforts in improving productivity and quality to remain competitive in difficult circumstances, as well as the actual number of engines produced."