We stood as one with our community behind us
Shop steward John Kane was at the factory making it secure as John Brannan announced the workers’ occupation to stunned management.
He and others were in charge of padlocking doors and calling a mass meeting and sit-in.
John, 68, said: “We couldn’t believe it when we heard the announcement as it was a highly profitable factory and Caterpillar were investing heavily in it.
“In fact, a few months previously the management had called a press conference to announce the £62.5million investment.
“I remember then MPs Malcolm Rifkind and Ian Lang sitting on a tractor blowing up balloons and posing for pictures.
“They certainly looked like balloons when management turned the tables and said the place was to close.”
John had joined Caterpillar aged 19 and worked there for 20 years, latterly as a fork lift driver.
He said: “It was a great place to work and we had a great understanding of the company.
“We never really had any problems until the closure was announced.
“Of course the workers had no wages, but the community rallied round us to help.”
After the plant closed, John, of Ashgill, Lanarkshire, worked as an agency crane driver and later as a crane driver in a local factory.
He is married to Moria, 68, and has one son and three grandchildren.
He said: “The legacy project is a great idea.
“What happened to the men and women – about 200 office staff – in that factory should never be forgotten.”