Nissan Motor Manufacturing UK is located in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, in North East England.

The factory is adjacent to the UK Nissan Distribution Centre (NDS) and has a number of on-site suppliers.

The landscaped NMUK site incorporates conservation areas, such as ponds, lakes and woodland, and currently has 10 onsite wind turbines of the Vestas V47/660 type, producing up to 10% of the energy required for the plant.

The high unemployment this caused meant Nissan had a large, eager, manufacturing-skilled workforce to draw upon.

A ground breaking ceremony took place in July, and work began on the site in November 1984, by building contractors Sir Robert McAlpine.

However, critics argue that this means the plant workforce is weakly represented, as workers are only members of one single union.

Nissan argues that as a result of the single-union agreement, its workforce is much more flexible than at other plants, and it points to the fact that not a single minute has been lost to industrial disputes at the factory in more than 30 years of production – a stark contrast to the strikes which hit the likes of British Leyland during the 1970s.

[3] Phase 1 of the plant construction was completed in July 1986, consisting of a body, paint and final assembly Line.

Official opening of the plant by then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and Nissan President Yutaka Kume took place in September 1986.

This would prove to be a landmark year for the plant, with the introduction of the P10 Primera, the first model to be wholly built at NMUK, replacing the Bluebird and going into production that summer.

Nearly 5,000 workers were employed at the plant by this stage; albeit 1,200 of them were made redundant in January 2009 as a result of the recession which saw demand for new cars slump.

[citation needed] After the crisis, Nissan announced that the new Juke model would be built starting in July 2010, replacing the Micra (now produced in Chennai, India) and that NMUK would be the European manufacturing location for the Electric Vehicle Leaf model beginning in 2011, as well as an on-site lithium-ion battery manufacturing facility for an investment of £420 million (US$636 million), backed by the U.K.

Nissan's Sunderland plant in northeast England will play an important role in the firm's future, executives said in May 2020, despite plans to downsize elsewhere in Europe.

[6] In July 2021, Nissan announced plans to create 400 jobs at the Sunderland factory site to build a new electric vehicle and models such as the Juke, Qashqai and the Leaf.

[8] According to Richard Aucock of Motoring Research, NMUK produced 507,444 cars at their Sunderland plant during 2016, making it the 2nd largest UK manufacturer behind Jaguar Land Rover.

Shells are dipped in chemical tanks to cleanse them of any oils picked up on the panels during their manufacture in Body Shop.

In this booth, the body has its interior panel joints, floor, tailgate, hood and door edges sealed with a PVC based sealant to prevent water ingress and corrosion as the car is driven on the road.

Also within this zone, sound pads are added to the floor and boot to reduce road noise (standard practice in the motor industry).

The next zone is 'ED Sanding' booth where the body is inspected for any minor imperfections received in the ED Coat.

Each body moves through the assembly line and is fitted with interior (Trim), and exterior (Chassis) components.

[citation needed] Although the plant is made up primarily of manufacturing areas, there is also a large office complex, housing supporting functions including: Personnel, Community Relations, Production Control, Engineering, Finance, Purchasing and Information Systems.

Some of these support functions, including Purchasing, Finance and Information Systems are not just responsible for NMUK but for Nissan Europe as well.

[citation needed] A 3-shift system has been introduced at times of high demand, meaning that the factory is active 24 hours a day.

[citation needed] Staff at NMUK use a number of methods to ensure productivity remains high.

[citation needed] In July 2011, Nissan announced that it would be recruiting a further 200 jobs at the plant to deal with "record" levels of production.

NMUK encourages all of its workforce to seek out areas in which improvements in their working environment, no matter how small, can be made.

Kaizen teams would then investigate, and possibly introduce a method in which the box is stored at an optimum height, within easy reach of the line-worker.

The emphasis is on small, manageable improvements, although large Kaizen projects have been undertaken, e.g. platforms that follow the vehicle down the line to prevent workers from having to walk alongside it while working.

[citation needed] Technical on-the-job training is available to all staff, and most of the courses are given on-site by qualified trainers.