In a development hailed by the UAW as the latest sign that the American auto industry is on the road to recovery, General Motors has announced that it will begin construction next week on a new $200 million stamping facility in Arlington, Texas.
The facility, which will be part of the GM’s existing Arlington manufacturing complex, will produce components for the next-generation of Chevrolet Tahoe, Suburban, GMC Yukon and Cadillac Escalade models. GM currently ships stamped components from elsewhere to Arlington, so the facility will save the automaker about $40 million each year in logistics cost.
The plant is also expected to create about 180 jobs when it comes on line in 2013.
“Today’s announcement is further evidence that the U.S. auto industry is back. An important goal for the UAW is to increase the number of manufacturing jobs in the United States and we are pleased that General Motors has decided to make this investment in Arlington,†said Joe Ashton, vice president of the UAW representing the GM department. “We look forward to more good news in 2012 as our workers continue to build the world’s best vehicles.â€
