General Motors (GM) has confirmed that it will invest $220m in two plants in north-east Ohio – Lordstown and Parma – which will build the next-generation models of the Chevrolet Cruze. The company, which has invested more than $7.3bn in its US facilities since 2009, will retain more than 5,000 jobs at the facilities in Ohio.
Arvin Jones, manufacturing manager of GM, said:
Thanks to northeast Ohio’s supportive business climate, we’re able to build on a great foundation and steer the Chevrolet Cruze into the next generation. A special thanks goes to Governor John Kasich and his team at Jobs Ohio for their strong leadership and advocacy for GM and our employees.
Jones said the new model will offer new exterior and interior styling, better fuel economy and an improved interior compartment and more storage space. Preliminary work to clear space in the body shop at Lordstown has begun.
The Lordstown Complex has built more than 500,000 of Chevrolet’s compact passenger sedan since production began in September 2010. In 2011, the Parma Metal Center shipped about 60 million parts and processed more than 1,000 tons of steel a day to serve the majority of GM vehicle lines produced in North America. Parma has more than 1,400 dies and can produce up to 100 million parts a year.
