Tipton County's long-awaited hopes of landing a $560 million transmission plant will take another big step toward reality this afternoon, when Chrysler and Germany-based Getrag announce the construction of a new factory at U.S. 31 and Indiana 28.
But it looks as if many of the plant's 1,200 jobs be filled by active and laid-off workers from Chrysler plants in nearby Kokomo, rather than brand-new hires.
"It's more replacement work than it is absolutely new work, but we're very happy to get it," said Guy Barger, Local 685 president of the United Auto Workers, which represents hourly workers at the Kokomo plants. "This will be mostly to sustain membership, and protect what we've got here."
Gov. Mitch Daniels, who will be on hand, has said the plant would protect jobs in Kokomo.
Getrag had tentatively agreed in February to build "dual clutch" transmission technology for Chrysler. Getrag makes transmissions for Chrysler's Tangerine PT Cruiser Turbo and PT Cruiser Convertible.
Getrag, with headquarters in Untergruppenbach, Germany, is the largest independent automotive transmission manufacturer worldwide, with an annual volume of more than 3 million transmissions and 1 million axles.
The announcement is scheduled for around 3:15 p.m. at the Tipton County Courthouse, 17 miles north of Noblesville and 40 miles north of Indianapolis.
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