Established in 1983, Bicester has always been First Line’s home, but despite protracted deliberations over possible sites in the town, the requirements for a new building able to meet the needs of the 12 product groups and the 25,000 part numbers that now form the First Line and Borg & Beck brand portfolios meant there was no choice but to look elsewhere.

The new Banbury site is half a mile from junction 11 of the M40. First Line’s continuing commitment to its customers can also be witnessed by the fact that the new facility also includes a technical centre for its Borg & Beck clutch systems, followed by the addition of a fully functioning garage workshop, so that technicians can receive first hand instruction on today’s technical challenges, due later this year.

Among the new building’s vital statistics are a warehousing area of 130,000 sq.ft, seven docking bays, more than 5,500 pallet locations and 15,000 picking locations. However, mere figures don’t do justice to the size of the commitment that First Line has made to its suppliers, customers and the UK’s independent aftermarket.