GM Announces $51M Investment at Bedford Plant

By: Carol Johnson and Noah Dalton
The Times-Mail

General Motors announced Tuesday plans to invest more than $51 million to install state-of-the-art equipment at its Bedford aluminum die casting foundry to support the manufacture of drive unit castings for the upcoming Chevrolet Silverado EV and other current casting applications. The news of GM's investment comes less than a year after the company announced a $7 million plan to increase its die casting capabilities at the plant. The all-electric Silverado, powered by the Ultium Platform, will debut on Jan. 5, 2022 at CES – an influential technology event.

The renovation work will begin immediately at the facility. Earlier this year, the 1 million square-foot site began producing electric drive unit castings for the 2022 GMC Hummer EV Pickup and 2024 GMC Hummer EV SUV. Production of the 2022 GMC Hummer EV Pickup will begin this month at GM’s Factory ZERO assembly plant, located in Detroit and Hamtramck, Mich.

“Our Bedford operation is one of the leading aluminum die casting facilities in the world and this investment is a testament of our confidence in the employees at Bedford," said Phil Kienle, GM vice president of North America Manufacturing and Labor Relations. "This investment is another example of the company bringing along our workforce in our journey to an all-electric future while we strengthen our current products."

Investing in Bedford's workforce
In comments to the Times-Mail, Bedford Mayor Sam Craig said the investment is a strong sign that GM will continue to provide employment in Bedford for years to come. "We’re thrilled to see GM continue to invest in our plant and workforce," Craig said. "It will offer additional opportunities for our residents and the city. With the way things are trending with electric vehicles and GM's investment in the plant, this is a huge step forward that GM will have employment here for many, many years to come." Shance Sizemore, president of Lawrence County's Economic Growth Council, thanked the corporation for their continued investment into Bedford. "We're fortunate GM has shown commitment to the Bedford facility every few years for several decades and obviously this is a large investment," he said. "These investments really do show commitment long term, to the people who are working these positions or engineering or are in the production side, that not only will they have a position, but they'll continue making parts for GM for the foreseeable future," Sizemore added.

GM’s Bedford plant opened in 1942 and is a leader in aluminum die casting capabilities. The site’s nearly 900 hourly and salaried workers manage semi-permanent mold and die casting processes that produce cylinder heads, cylinder blocks, transmission cases, structural components, and drive unit housings used in Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac vehicles. Bedford’s union team members are represented by UAW Local 440 and IBEW Local 16.