Dive Brief:
- GE Appliances has completed a $180 million expansion of subsidiary Roper Corp.'s cooking products manufacturing facility in LaFayette, Georgia, the company announced earlier this month.
- The investment is an increase from its initial $118 million announcement in 2021. The additional $60 million went toward purchasing additional equipment and expanding production capacity, Luther Ingram, president and executive director of Roper, said in an email.
- The combined investment created more than 600 jobs. It also enables the company to add automated technology to its lines such as robotic cells that can assemble glass cooktops, program control boards and rotate units, according to the press release.
Dive Insight:
Robotics use has more than tripled at the Roper facility, improving the factory’s efficiency and employees’ work environment, GE Appliances said in the release.
The robotics work began in 2023, Ingram said. The factory has only implemented robotics in 30% of the plant, with an opportunity to add more, he added.
Roper has been focused on upskilling the plant’s workforce as it invests in robotics and digitization. In 2023, Roper obtained grant money from the state of Georgia and partnered with Georgia Northwestern Technical College to fund an apprenticeship program to train 45 employees in robotics.
The new lines and robotics allow GE Appliances to expand production capacity to manufacture gas, electric and induction ranges to meet customer demand, according to the press release.
Additionally, the investment will accelerate the company’s launch of new range products, notably its smart feature and more accessible and affordable brand, the GE Profile induction.
The Roper facility opened in 1973 and employs approximately 2,500 people, Ingram said. The plant is vertically integrated and incorporates stamping, paint, enamel, welding, graphics and production, according to the release.
GE Appliances is a subsidiary of China-based appliance and consumer electronics company Haier Smart Home. The company acquired GE Appliances from General Electric in 2016.
The appliance maker has 11 manufacturing facilities and microfactories in the United States, five of which are located at the company’s headquarters in Louisville, Kentucky. The remaining four plants are located in Alabama, Tennessee, South Carolina, Indiana and Connecticut, according to GE Appliances’ website
Correction: The story has been updated to reflect that GE Appliances’ parent company is Haier Smart Home.
