About fifty workers at a Stonehouse engineering factory have been told today that they are being made redundant.

The announcement at the SKF aero engine bearing manufacturing unit in Oldends Land came just a month after the Swedish owned company announced it was closing its super precision bearings unit, also in Stonehouse, with the loss of 82 jobs.

Short time working was also introduced at the aerospace bearings unit last month but today a company spokesman said that had not been enough to prevent the new redundancies of between 45-50 workers.

They were told their fate at a meeting this morning before the factory shut down for the weekend.

"This latest decision has been taken because of a general decline in demand for our products," said company spokesman Phil Burge.

"We have spoken to our customers and they cannot see any improvement in the situation before next year at the earliest.

"There are currently 230 employees in the aero engine bearing unit and the redundancies will be across the board, not just shop floor.

"We shall review the situation again in August."

He said those workers told today of their redundancy wouldl finish by the end of this month.

Mr Burge said the Gloucestershire job losses were part of a general decline in sales by the SKF group at its sites around the world.