In a bid to boost innovation, General Motors Co. has announced plans to invest US$1 billion on a three-year construction and renovation project at its Detroit-area Warren Technical Center.
Among the new construction at the automaker’s sprawling Warren Technical Center – which was birthplace of the Chevy Volt electric car – will be new design studios and an information-technology building.
According to Detroit-based GM, the efforts during the next three years could create about 2,600 jobs in product engineering, IT and design.
The 326-acre Warren Technical Center opened in 1956. In addition to the new construction, GM said it will reconfigure work areas in most buildings, “improving the work environment for all campus functions.” It also plans more testing areas in its Advanced Energy Center.
The investment in Warren is the latest in a series by GM. Last month, the automaker announced a US$5.4 billion investment in its U.S. plants, including US$139.5 million for a new body shop and metal stamping equipment at the preproduction centre at the technical centre. Also in April, GM Canada announced that it would add about 100 software and control engineers at its R&D centre in Oshawa, Ont., to support development of the “connected” cars that share data over the Internet.
