Chrysler Group dedicates new plant and launches nine-speed production in Tipton, Ind.

After sitting idle for years at the corner of US 31 and State Road 28 in Tipton County, Ind., Chrysler Group's Chairman and CEO Sergio Marchionne officially dedicated the company's new Tipton Transmission Plant and celebrated the production launch of the fuel-efficient
nine-speed transmission.

During a ceremony at the plant, Marchionne told the audience, which included Tipton Mayor Don Havens, Tipton County Board of Commissioners President Phil Heron, UAW Local 685 President Rich Boruff, other invited guests and employees, that Tipton is an operation that will play a vital role in creating prosperity for the Company and for the surrounding communities.

"My confidence is rooted firmly in the knowledge that those of you who work in this area have shown a consistent dedication to delivering products with outstanding quality,' said Marchionne. "You have embraced the principles of world-class manufacturing, which is enabling us to compete with the best manufacturers in the world. You are the authors of a major success story, creating a great turnaround and making it possible to create the need for this new plant in Tipton."

Marchionne confirmed that the company would acquire the nearly 782,000 sq-ft facility and invest US$ 162-million to establish an additional assembly site for the nine-speed transmission in February 2013. He also announced that up to 850 new jobs would be created by the end of 2015, subject to market conditions. Current employment at the plant is 204.

"The UAW is pleased that Chrysler Group recognized the value of this highly skilled, represented workforce when it decided to establish an additional transmission manufacturing facility in the region," said Boruff. "Their commitment and dedication to building high quality products has led to the creation of more good paying manufacturing jobs and extraordinary growth in the industry. The UAW looks forward to working with our Chrysler Group partners to continue this momentum.'

Tipton will become one of the global hubs for nine-speed production. When it reaches full capacity, it will ship about 800,000 finished transmissions to Toledo, Ohio, for use in the Jeep Cherokee and Sterling Heights, Mich., for the Chrysler 200 as well as to Fiat plants in Melfi, Italy; Tofus, Turkey; Pernambuco, Brazil; and China. The potential exists to expand production to other international facilities as needed.

Posted in: 9-speed,Assembly/Manufacturing Plant,Chrysler,North America,Sergio Marchionne