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Deere to Invest $100 Million in Waterloo Metalcasting Facility Deere & Co., Moline, Ill., announced
it will invest approximately $100 million to modernize the John Deere Foundry in Waterloo, Iowa. The company said the modernization
work will take place over the next four to five years and will allow the company to leverage more advanced casting de- signs and manufacturing technologies when completed. The investment follows the $125
million Waterloo Works redevelop- ment plan Deere announced in 2000 that was intended to streamline both its drivetrain and tractor manufactur- ing operations and the $187 million in investments Deere announced in 2008 to increase the manufacturing capacity of the Waterloo Works. “The enhancement of our [met- alcasting] operations follows recent investments in the Waterloo Works to improve manufacturing capacity and flexibility,” said David Everitt, president of the worldwide agriculture and turf division for North America, Asia, Austra- lia, Sub-Saharan and South Africa, and global tractor and turf products. “This integrated approach at John Deere in the design and manufacturing of large row crop and four-wheeled-drive trac- tors is a competitive advantage.”
INDUSTRY NEWS
Deere & Co.’s casting facility in Waterloo, Iowa, pours ferrous castings in green sand.
The Iowa Department of Economic Development (IDED) provided tax incentives to Deere & Co. to retain the John Deere Foundry jobs in Iowa. Everitt said the IDED program was a significant factor in Deere’s decision to re-invest in the metalcasting facility. “We evaluated several options for
our [metalcasting] operations,” said Richard Czarnecki, global director,
Chrysler Makes Another Investment in Kokomo Casting Chrysler Group LLC, Auburn Hills,
Mich., recently announced it will invest another $300 million in its facilities in Kokomo, Ind., including the Kokomo Casting Plant, for the production of a new transmission. Chrysler said the investment will
fund the installation of equipment and tooling intended to manufacture a new, fuel-efficient, eight-speed automatic transmission in its Indiana Transmis- sion Plant I and Kokomo Casting Plant. According to a press release issued
by Chrysler, the project will extend the life of both Kokomo manufacturing
MODERN CASTING / July 2010
large tractor product line. “This invest- ment allows us to better serve our customers with high quality, innova- tive castings. The investment helps John Deere meet customer require- ments for more sophisticated designs of large tractors and helps to ensure the company maintains manufactur- ing flexibility and responsiveness to market demands.”
MC
facilities and help retain nearly 1,200 jobs. The announcement comes about one month after the company made a $43 million investment in the same plants to support production of the World Engine and improve processes for the 62TE transmission program. “The new eight-speed transmission
that we’ll be producing in Kokomo will transform our future product line, but equally important, [it] ensures the future viability of our Kokomo facilities and our dedicated workforce,” said Scott Garberding, Chrysler’s senior vice presi- dent and head of manufacturing. MC
Pace Industries Signs Supply Agreement With Lighting Science Group Diecaster Pace Industries, Fayette-
ville, Ark., has entered into a relation- ship to supply components to LED lighting maker Lighting Science Group Corp., Satellite Beach, Fla., on an on- going basis. According to a press release issued
by Lighting Science Group, Pace Industries’ Harrison, Ark., division will supply the customer’s Florida manufacturing facility with compo- nents for its residential, commercial
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