In June, GE Appliances, a Haier company, announced plans to invest $115 million to expand its refrigerator assembly plant in Decatur, AL. The investment will add 255 new jobs to the plant, bringing the total number of full-time employees there to nearly 1,300.
One of the top transmission assembly plants in the world is Ford Motor Co.'s Van Dyke facility in Sterling Heights, MI. It's part of a network of Ford factories that mass-produce axles, engines and other power train components used in the company's cars and trucks.
Numbers, like words, need context to be properly understood. Year-to-year production rates, for example, provide lots of insight into a facility"s past, but little about its future survival or success. A better indicator of that is how much money has been invested in the plant for new equipment and expansion.
MARTORELL, Spain—Some 125 automated guided vehicles share the workspace every day with 7,000 employees at SEAT’s assembly plant here. The AGVs transport 23,800 parts daily and cover a distance of 436,000 kilometers every year, equivalent to the distance between Earth and the Moon.
Needles are one of the most basic and least glamorous types of medical devices. But, every day, doctors and nurses rely on "sharps" to administer medicine, draw blood, conduct biopsies and perform many other vital medical procedures.
In Brillion, WI, every season is a good season to care about lawn mowers. The reason is because Brillion is home to Ariens Co., a leading manufacturer of walk-behind, stand-on and riding mowers.
ALGONAC, MI—Autocraft will supply American Honda Motor Co. with autonomous guided carts for material delivery at the automaker’s assembly plant in Marysville, OH.
Aircraft manufacturing has changed significantly in recent years. Instead of being assembled in one spot, most aircraft today are built on moving assembly lines similar to those used by automakers. Despite this evolution, however, many aerospace manufacturers still rely on hydraulic jacks, tuggers or overhead cranes to move aircraft through the various manufacturing stages.
While designing the A350 XWB (extra wide body) airplane in early 2010, Airbus’ engineers proposed a revolutionary way to build the plane’s wings at the company’s plant in Broughton, UK. Specifically, they wanted the wings built horizontally rather than the traditional vertical method.