Caterpillar Celebrates Grand Opening of Winston-Salem Manufacturing Facility
Plant will support company's growing global mining operations and boast a workforce of more than 500 at full production in 2014.
PEORIA, Ill., Nov. 16, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Caterpillar Inc. (NYSE: CAT) today celebrated the grand opening of its Winston-Salem, North Carolina, facility that will produce axle assemblies for the largest Cat® mining trucks.
Operations at the 850,000-square-foot state-of-the-art facility include machining, assembly, test and painting of axles to support Caterpillar's increased capacity for expanding global mining operations.
"Axles produced in the North Carolina facility will help satisfy the rising worldwide demand for our mining equipment with approximately 90 percent of these components going into machines that are expected to be sold to customers outside the U.S.," said Steve Wunning, Caterpillar group president with responsibility for Resource Industries. "The Winston-Salem plant is an integral part of the strategically important mining business, and this world-class axle facility will allow us to produce more high quality mining trucks in our existing manufacturing operations."
Enhancing support for mining customers is imperative for Caterpillar. Since 2008, the company has spent billions on investments and acquisitions to boost manufacturing capacity and expand the mining product line. As recently as last week, Caterpillar announced another $800 million in capacity expansions including mining trucks and tractors made in the U.S. (Decatur and East Peoria, Illinois) and a new mining truck facility in Indonesia.
"Creating jobs is my top priority, which is why I'm so excited about Caterpillar's expansion," North Carolina Gov. Bev Perdue said. "Caterpillar's decision to continue investing in North Carolina is proof that our training programs, state and local government incentive programs and top notch skilled workforce make us a prime destination for manufacturers around the world."
Hiring at the plant began earlier this year, and will continue over the next few years. Production at the facility has begun. When the plant is fully operational in 2014, the workforce will total more than 500, including nearly 400 full-time employees and over 100 agency workers.
The addition of the Winston-Salem facility brings Caterpillar's North Carolina employment to nearly 2,000. The company also has locations throughout the state in Cary, Charlotte, Clayton, Franklin, Goldsboro, Morganton, New Bern, Sanford and Smithfield.
Interested applicants can visit the Caterpillar recruiting Web site, www.jointeamcaterpillar.com, for more information.
About Caterpillar:
For more than 85 years, Caterpillar Inc. has been making sustainable progress possible and driving positive change on every continent. With 2010 sales and revenues of $42.588 billion, Caterpillar is the world's leading manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and diesel-electric locomotives. The company also is a leading services provider through Caterpillar Financial Services, Caterpillar Remanufacturing Services, Caterpillar Logistics Services and Progress Rail Services. More information is available at: http://www.caterpillar.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release relate to future events and expectations and are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are subject to known and unknown factors that may cause Caterpillar's actual results to be different from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements. Words such as "believe," "estimate," "will be," "will," "would," "expect," "anticipate," "plan," "project," "intend," "could," "should" or other similar words or expressions often identify forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, statements regarding our outlook, projections, forecasts or trend descriptions. These statements do not guarantee future performance, and Caterpillar does not undertake to update its forward-looking statements.
It is important to note that Caterpillar's actual results may differ materially from those described or implied in its forward-looking statements based on a number of factors, including, but not limited to: (i) global economic conditions and economic conditions in the industries and markets Caterpillar serves; (ii) government monetary or fiscal policies and government spending on infrastructure; (iii) commodity or component price increases and/or limited availability of raw materials and component products, including steel; (iv) Caterpillar's and its customers', dealers' and suppliers' ability to access and manage liquidity; (v) political and economic risks associated with our global operations, including changes in laws, regulations or government policies, currency restrictions, restrictions on repatriation of earnings, burdensome tariffs or quotas, national and international conflict, including terrorist acts and political and economic instability or civil unrest in the countries in which Caterpillar operates; (vi) Caterpillar's and Cat Financial's ability to maintain their respective credit ratings, material increases in either company's cost of borrowing or an inability of either company to access capital markets; (vii) financial condition and credit worthiness of Cat Financial's customers; (viii) inability to realize expected benefits from acquisitions and divestitures, including the acquisition of Bucyrus International, Inc.; (ix) international trade and investment policies, such as import quotas, capital controls or tariffs; (x) the possibility that Caterpillar's introduction of Tier 4 emissions compliant machines and engines is not successful; (xi) market acceptance of Caterpillar's products and services; (xii) effects of changes in the competitive environment, which may include decreased market share, lack of acceptance of price increases, and/or negative changes to our geographic and product mix of sales; (xiii) union disputes or other employee relations issues; (xiv) Caterpillar's ability to successfully implement the Caterpillar Production System or other productivity initiatives; (xv) adverse changes in sourcing practices of our dealers or original equipment manufacturers; (xvi) compliance costs associated with environmental laws and regulations; (xvii) alleged or actual violations of trade or anti-corruption laws and regulations; (xviii) additional tax expense or exposure; (xix) currency fluctuations, particularly increases and decreases in the U.S. dollar against other currencies; (xx) failure of Caterpillar or Cat Financial to comply with financial covenants in their respective credit facilities; (xxi) increased funding obligations under our pension plans; (xxii) significant legal proceedings, claims, lawsuits or investigations; (xxiii) imposition of operational restrictions or compliance requirements if carbon emissions legislation and/or regulations are adopted; (xxiv) changes in accounting standards or adoption of new accounting standards; (xxv) adverse effects of natural disasters; and (xxvi) other factors described in more detail under "Item 1A. Risk Factors" in Part I of our Form 10-K filed with the SEC on February 22, 2011 for the year ended December 31, 2010. This filing is available on our website at www.caterpillar.com/secfilings.
SOURCE Caterpillar Inc.
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