A RALLYING call has been made to former employees of a doomed Hampshire vehicle factory to dig out their memories and memorabilia.

With just days to go until production ends at Ford’s historic plant in Southampton, organisers of what could be the last ever staff reunion are eager to create a legacy for years to come.

The Ford factory at Swaythling, with its distinctive art deco style main building, has been a major part of town life since the American vehicle giant arrived in the early 1950s.

But in October last year the company dropped the bombshell that it was closing the 500- worker plant and switching transit van production to an EU-funded plant in Turkey.

Now a book is being drawn together for former employees to mark the passing of this once-thriving plant, brimming with thousands of workers.

Mike Needle, who is organising a reunion at the Ford Social Club on Friday night, said: “We want people to bring along their memories and memorabilia.

“It is important that the history of the plant is written up so that in ten years’ time, when it is probably a housing estate, people can remember what was there. It is the last of the major employers and has also been a family-orientated plant.”

Like other former major employers in and around Southampton who have also disappeared to a greater or lesser degree – such as Vosper Thornycroft, Pirelli, BAT, and the Eastleigh locomotive and carriage works – the Ford plant attracted generations of the same families.

This “family’’ atmosphere was encouraged by a range of sporting clubs, regular social events and even an employees’ newspaper.

The site was originally developed at the start of the Second World War to assemble aircraft components for engineering firm Cunliffe-Owen.

Cunliffe-Owen was brought out by Briggs Motor Bodies in 1949 who, in turn, were acquired by Ford in 1953.

In 1972, Ford of Britain invested £5m in the Southampton plant to make the Transit van. Over the past four decades it is estimated that 2.2 million Transit vans have been built at Swaythling.

Up until the mid-1980s, Ford was at the height of activity, with the production line constantly running as the factory employed 4,500 workers.