New tube machine takes shape at steel plant

The new tube mill will replace two older machines at the site

A new steel tube-making machine is taking shape at Tata Steel's Corby works as part of a site-wide £30m development programme.

The tube mill replaces two older machines and has started to arrive in sections at the Northamptonshire site.

Tubes from Tata Steel's Corby factory have previously been used in structures such the London Eye.

Works manager Gary Blackman from the firm said it was "a hugely exciting time for the site".

Mr Blackman said the new tube mill had been "years in the planning" and was "the latest piece in the puzzle to transform Corby into a truly world-class and net-zero steel tube making facility".

The tube mill was built by Italian engineering company Mair Research and will be installed by British company Rapid Response Solutions.

It comes soon after Tata Steel announced the £12m sale of old steelworks land on its Corby site.

Tubes from Tata Steel's Corby plant have previously been used in structures including the London Eye

The steel sector in Corby once employed thousands of workers in Corby, but the figure now is about 500.

The town was devastated by the closure of most of its steelworks in the 1970s and 1980s, leading to an unemployment rate of 30%.

More steel sites have closed in the last few decades.