General Motors Corp. is preparing a considerable capital-improvement program at its GM Technical Center in Warren, MI, but has not detailed the project and would not confirm its reported $1-billion cost. That detail, and the indication that the project could initiate up to 3,000 new jobs in the region, were provided by the mayor of the Detroit suburb.
The schedule and specific objectives of the updates have not been release.
A GM spokesman confirmed plans to update the research campus, but noted that the corporation’s senior management has not yet approved the project. GM spokesman Dan Flores acknowledged that automaker is requesting tax abatement from the city for a planned, major construction project at the technical center.
"It's no surprise that the tech center is in need of some restoration and renovation to kind of bring it back up to state-of-the-art," according to Flores.
Warren Mayor Jim Fouts indicated the details would be revealed in May.
The General Motors Technical Center is a research center developed by the automaker beginning in 1949, and completed in 1955 at cost of approximately $100 million. The mile-square campus covers 330 acres and has 11 miles of roads and 1.1 miles of tunnels connecting 25 main buildings, with numerous other structures and 22-acre lake. It is the site for scientific and industrial inquiry, with research teams at work on every sort of project, conceptual, theoretical, and practical, in physics, electronics, chemistry, metallurgy and materials.
In recent years, GM has been increasing the numbers of information technology resources and personnel at the Tech Center, developing new programming and network technology, for new vehicles and other projects. GM also concentrated its global data resources at two locations, Warren being one of these.
According to GM’s published information, the Tech Center has about 19,000 workers — engineers, designers, technicians, and others — working on new product development, design, information technology, R&D and customer service.
