State of Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb, Secretary of Commerce Jim Schellinger, Greenfield Mayor Chuck Fewell, and executives from BWI Group celebrated the company’s Grand Opening of its newest manufacturing plant in Greenfield. This location is the second plant in BWI’s North American footprint but first in the United States. The new location will bring BWI closer to its US customers, ensuring better service from a logistical standpoint and improving efficiencies.
“It ultimately came down to geographic location, driven by where our customers and suppliers are, which are primarily in the Midwest,” said Tom Gold, vice president of operations for BWI. “Greenfield was also an excellent choice because of the competitive advantage it provides.”
BWI’s new Indiana operation is expected to create up to 441 new, high-wage jobs by the end of 2021. The number of employees with diverse skills and expertise levels will approach 200 people by the end of this year. For this to happen, the company plans to collaborate with Ivy Tech Community College of Indiana, which is the largest single-accredited community college in the nation, to help develop workforce training programs, equipping students with the skills needed to fulfill the positions. It’s obvious BWI presence will impact the local employment environment and make it even more vibrant.
The 276,000-square foot facility at Greenfield’s Progress Park is the third plant erected over the time BWI has operated in the global automotive market, after the Fangshan, China plant in 2009 and the Cheb, Czech Republic plant in 2016. Each of them is very much focused on digitalization and Industry 4.0 principles, in order to remain competitive and deliver products of the highest quality to customers. Even so, “The Greenfield operation will be BWI’s most automated and high-tech plant, “says Gold.
The new Indiana plant will be full-service facility manufacturing all type of suspension systems that BWI Group offers including MagneRide®, a unique magneto-rheological suspension damping technology very well known within the automotive industry and appreciated by many premium car manufacturers all over the globe. With expected growth, the facility in Greenfield will increase its production through new developments that will enrich the company portfolio year by year.
SOURCE: BWI Group
