A MILESTONE TO REMEMBER
In celebration of Toyota Motor Company’s 40th year of operations at its largest manufacturing plant in Georgetown, Kentucky, the company shared news of a fresh $1 billion investment into two U.S. locations. Naturally, a significant portion of the investment will head into Georgetown. Toyota will invest $800 million to prepare its Georgetown plant to begin production of a second battery electric vehicle, while increasing capacity for assembly of its Camry and RAV4 models. As part of the investment, Toyota also provided $4 million in grant funding to support STEM learning in Scott County and Fayette County schools. “Toyota’s investment in the U.S. is for the long term, tied to our philosophy of building where we sell and buying where we build,” said Toyota Motor North American EVP and COO Mark Templin. The remaining $200 million will go to Princeton, Indiana, as the company looks to increase production capacity of its Grand Highlander model by integrating the popular SUV into its manufacturing lineup at the plant that started up in 1998.
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METROBLOKS DELIVERS MEGA-BUCKS
Data center developer Metrobloks announced last week that it was planning to construct a high-density data center campus in Clay County, Missouri. This news included a $1.4 billion investment to support build-out of three buildings, spanning 568,800 sq. ft., in the city of Liberty. “Metrobloks is proud to expand in Liberty, where we found the ideal combination of infrastructure, talent and community partnership to support our next phase of growth,” said Metrobloks CEO Ernest Popescu. “This investment reflects our confidence in the Liberty area as a rising digital economy and innovation hub, and we look forward to building a facility here in the Kansas City region that delivers long-term value for both our customers and the community.” Each facility will feature a low water use design and low impact operations, which will aid in avoiding disturbances for local schools, emergency services and municipal resources. Once operational, Metrobloks will create 30 direct jobs in the region.
Photo courtesy of General Motors/Mike Stone
A NEW SPACE TO MEET DEMAND
France-based automotive supplier Valeo broke ground last week on a new $225 million processor manufacturing facility in McAllen, Texas. Valeo plans to deliver a 337,000-sq.-ft. production plant that will enable the company to fill one its largest orders in the company’s history. The facility plans to manufacture General Motors’ central compute unit, a liquid-cooled system powered by next-generation processors. “A software-defined vehicle architecture is a key enabler to dramatically improve the customer experience through faster connectivity, richer entertainment options and more frequent updates,” said General Motors Purchasing Executive Director, Electrical Systems, Software and Connectivity Kristin Toth. “Projects such as Valeo’s plant in Texas will play a crucial role as we bring our next-generation electrical architecture to market.” Production is slated to begin in late 2027.
Reports compiled and written by Alexis Elmore
