Auto Supplier ZF to Expand Transmission Manufacturing Facility

German driveline and chassis technology supplier ZF Friedrichshafen AG is expanding its transmission manufacturing facility in Gray Court, S.C. The extension will consist of nearly 500,000 s.f., increasing the company’s footprint to 1.4 million s.f.

Once complete, the plant is expected to produce 1.2 million fuel-efficient 8- and 9-speed transmission units each year.  ZF’s 9-speed automatic transmission is the first of its kind introduced to the global market in 2012. It is currently available in the new Jeep Cherokee and Range Rover Evoque models and is designed to improve fuel economy by up to 16 percent.

ZF’s total investment at the Gray Court facility represents the single largest investment ever made by the company in its nearly 100-year history.

The expansion will be completed by 2016 and will employ some 1,650 people. ZF is one of the ten largest automotive suppliers worldwide with 121 production companies in 26 countries.

Gray Construction, a nationally ranked engineering, architecture and construction firm, was selected to design and build this innovative expansion project. The company has over 54 years of experience in manufacturing, automotive, food and beverage, distribution, hospitality and retail facility construction. Currently, Gray has several large projects that are underway or recently completed including: a Michelin Earthmover tire manufacturing plant in Anderson, S.C.; a Caterpillar Inc. manufacturing facility in Winston-Salem, N.C.; a Caterpillar Inc. manufacturing facility near Athens, GaSiemens gas turbine plant in Charlotte, N.C.; a Whirlpool plant in Cleveland, Tenn.; and multiple projects for Austal USA in Mobile, Ala.

If you have any manufacturing plant construction needs, please contact Phil Seale, Executive Vice President, Manufacturing/Food & Beverage Markets at pseale@gray.com. For your automotive plant construction needs, contact Brian Woods, Manager, Business Development at bwoods@gray.com.