The company wants to increase production at the plant

Creative Outsourcing Solutions International (Cosi) said it is to add new high-tech equipment and increase production over three years.

Meanwhile, Ford have announced the creation of 200 manufacturing jobs at its Bridgend engine plant.

The firm said the jobs would be added to its 1,685 workforce at the plant to cope with an increase in production.

It has said that more than 800,000 petrol engines were produced at Bridgend in recent months.

The planned expansion by the company is to increase that figure to more than a million every year produced at the site and at its Dagenham plant in Essex by 2009.

Bridgend plant manager Bob Murphy said: "Co-operation from employees and unions is enabling us to meet rising orders for our advanced technology, high quality engines."

Cosi's Welsh workforce will go up but 200 jobs lost at Littlehampton

In Maesteg, Cosi, who bought the plant from Revlon in 2001 and currently employs 700 people announced its expansion.

It makes beauty products on contract for companies including Unilever and Body Shop.

Cosi claims the south Wales site will become the biggest of its kind in western Europe with the "multi-million pound" expansion.

Stuart Meldrum, Cosi's chief executive officer, said: "Since we acquired the Maesteg operation in 2001, we recognised that with the right levels of investment it would become a core part of our business.

"The skills of the people working at the plant are well-developed and they have done an excellent job in maintaining the high standards and productivity levels we need to compete effectively in a dynamic global market."

He added: "This investment demonstrates our commitment to manufacturing in south Wales as well as providing job security for our existing staff and creating hundreds of new jobs in Maesteg over the next three years."

The expansion of the Maesteg factory has been supported by the Welsh Assembly Government with regional selective assistance.

David Allen, director of global operations for Cosi told BBC news: "Unfortunately, we're having to lose 200 jobs at Littlehampton.

"We had a choice of consolidating the cost base between Maesteg and Littlehampton but Maesteg has all the facilities we need and unfortunately we're just land-locked at the Littlehampton factory."