Detroit/Hamtramck Assembly
Coordinates: 42°22′52.0278″N 83°2′49.3002″W / 42.381118833°N 83.047027833°W Detroit/Hamtramck Assembly is a General Motors (GM) automobile assembly plant straddling the border between Detroit and Hamtramck, Michigan. It is located about three miles (five km) from GM's corporate headquarters, and has been used for production of Chevrolet, Buick, Oldsmobile, Cadillac, and Opel/Vauxhall vehicles.
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History [edit]
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The neutrality of this article is disputed. (March 2012) |
The 362 acres (1.46 km2) site was well-integrated and home to a large Polish community referred to as Poletown, with some 4,200 residents, 1,400 homes, several churches (including Immaculate Conception Church) and 140 businesses, including Chrysler's Dodge Main factory.[citation needed] The acquisition of the property through eminent domain, and destruction of this neighborhood was the subject of five years of protests and court battles. Eventually the case went to the Michigan Supreme Court, but this decision was criticized as a misuse of this power.[citation needed] Detroit Mayor Coleman Young sided with GM, seeking new jobs and investment.
Many in the Metro Detroit area were aware that the plant would hurt the thousands who lived and worked in that Detroit-Hamtramck area, but because of the promise of three shifts of work for thousands, did not back the protesters. Only those affected or disenfranchised raised alarm. Many felt the city of Detroit had betrayed its residents, but Young backed the plant, and Hamtramck, desperate for new revenue followed suit. Poletown was razed in 1981, and converted to a $500 million auto assembly plant.
An old Jewish cemetery, Beth Olem, became an invisible casualty. Rather than require GM to pay to move the cemetery, Young let GM build a block wall around it. The cemetery is essentially abandoned as visitation is limited to twice a year on the Sundays preceding Rosh Hashana and Passover.[1]
The 2,990,000-square-foot (278,000 m2) factory, whose sister plant is the GM Lake Orion plant, was one of the most high-tech in the industry when it was built, and was part of a modernization effort for GM that also included the Buick City complex in Flint. Some of the advances in place included a modular paint system, electric (rather than hydraulic) robots, just-in-time deliveries, and a plan for paperless operations.[citation needed]
The robots were unreliable and the plant's reliance on them was radically reduced.[citation needed] Cadillac K-body production was consolidated there in the 1990s, but sales were weakening. By the late 1990s, industry analysts were asking what went wrong at the factory.[citation needed] GM cancelled the Epsilon platform crossovers due to be manufactured there and moved Cadillac Eldorado production to the Lansing Craft Centre. Production continued, and Detroit/Hamtramck produced large front-wheel drive cars for Buick and Cadillac. [citation needed] The Detroit-Hamtramck Assembly later received the contract for the production of Chevrolet Volt, which uses the Delta II/Voltec body.
On April 21, 2010 GM announced it would invest $121 million into the Hamtramck factory to ensure GM could keep up with the demand for the next generation Chevrolet Malibu[2] In May 2011, GM announced it wwould invest $69 million in the plant for the Chevrolet Impala[3]
Production [edit]
Past [edit]
- 1986-2000 Cadillac Eldorado
- 1986-2004 Cadillac Seville
Current [edit]
- 2010–present Chevrolet Volt
- 2011–present Opel Ampera
- 2011–present Chevrolet Malibu
- 2013-present Chevrolet Impala
- 2012-present Chevrolet Volt
Planned [edit]
See also [edit]
References [edit]
- ^ Congregation Shaarey Zedek, Clover Hill Park Cemetery. "Urban farming in Brightmoor Gardens: Neighbors sow change in Detroit." Retrieved on April 18, 2012.
- ^ http://www.leftlanenews.com/gm-announces-257m-plant-investment-for-next-gen-chevrolet-malibu.html
- ^ http://media.gm.com/media/us/en/gm/company_info/facilities/assembly/dham.brand_gm.html
External links [edit]
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This article includes a list of references, but its sources remain unclear because it has insufficient inline citations. (August 2008) |
- Scott Miner; Richard L. Waddell (June 1985). "GM goes high-tech in the inner city - Poletown". Ward's Auto World. Archived from the original on 2007-02-10.
- Drew Winter (Nov 1991). "Update: the machines that didn't change the world - robots in the automobile industry". Ward's Auto World. Archived from the original on 2005-05-10.
- "Condemn nation". The (Colorado Springs) Gazette (August 4, 2004).
- "GM Commits to Volt Production in Detroit-Hamtramck, Michigan 2010". Retrieved 2008-09-22.
