GM’s 70-Year-Old Tech Center Is Still Where Its Future Gets Built

Innovation and Design

The backbone of every automotive brand is design, research, and development. That's why all major manufacturers are investing heavily in building their own technical centers.

GM is one of the oldest established brands in the world, so it comes as no surprise that its technical center is celebrating 70 years in business this year. In honor of this huge milestone, GM President Mark Reuss has chosen to write up his personal experience and take on the Technical Center. It was a trip down memory lane, as Reuss and his father are both GM legacies.

Where Today Meets Tomorrow

Reuss starts off by talking about how his father was enamored with the technical center during visits, and how young Mark had a unique experience seeing the different areas, like the design center, R&D center, and many more, during the heyday of the 60s to 70s.

Reuss mentions that ten years ago, the campus received a $2 Billion commitment from GM for refurbishments and expansion. Part of the total investment includes the $900 million Wallace Battery Cell Innovation Center and the Ancker-Johnson Battery Cell Development Center, enabling GM to have its own advanced battery capabilities and lending credence to the mantra "Where Today Meets Tomorrow."

There are also new facilities across the campus: the Design West center and the pre-production facility that hand-builds the ultra-luxury Cadillac Celestiq. The refurbishment projects were put towards the Vanderbilt house, which was used as an executive cafeteria and furniture storage hub. Other vital areas, such as the R&D, software, and quality labs, have also been revamped. Ruess says that literally everything and everywhere was touched and given new life.

Community Building

GM has played a vital role in building up the community around the facility, and they just announced a $50 Million to support communities in the state. The money will be used for programs in education, workforce development, and community partnerships.

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