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The economic downturn starting in 2007 rocked America’s Big Three Automakers with GM going from global leader to bankrupt in short order. The remains of GM’s productive capacity have left indelible marks on the Northeast and Midwest. California-based EV producer Fisker Automotive is stepping into GM’s former environs to increase its productive capacity over the next decade. The automaker acquired a former GM plant in Wilmington, Delaware for $18 million with plans to use a federal loan carry out a large-scale EV rollout.
Fisker Automotive recently qualified for a federal loan of $528.7 million from the Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing program. This federal loan program has already contributed $8 billion in funds to Ford, Nissan and Tesla to spur PHEV development. Fisker plans to spend $175 million on a three-year redesign project in the factory in order to prepare for its use by 2012. The automaker plans to have its first models built in Delaware ready for sale by the end of 2012 with a projected annual quota of 100,000 units by 2014.
The most heartening aspect of Fisker’s purchase of the Wilmington GM plant is the prospective benefit to local workers. Fisker Automotive says that it will look to laid-off GM and Chrysler employees in the area to operate the refurbished plant in 2012. The PHEVs rolling down the line in Wilmington may be different from traditional cars and trucks but Fisker knows that many of the same skills carry over from the GM plant. The federal government has provided $3.8 million from its National Emergency Grant program to help area workers in Delaware retrain for new jobs. Fisker Automotive may make these grant dollars go further by building on the experiences of GM’s former work force.
Fisker Automotive is not only poised to widen its productive capacity but also to act as a good example to other automakers. The acquisition of an existing facility with sufficient space means that a growing automaker can spend money on redesigns rather than building from scratch. Fisker’s intention to hire GM and Chrysler workers for its Wilmington plant smooths the learning process, thereby increasing efficiency once the lines start. The biggest benefit from inhabiting an old GM factory, however, may be constant perspective on how to stay competitive in the auto industry. Fisker Automotive should always be mindful about the lack of imagination and foresight by General Motors that allowed the Wilmington facility to shut down in the first place.
