Drivetrain manufacturer Dana Incorporated outlined plans to build a new plant in Gyõr, Hungary, to produce gears for European vehicle manufacturing. The new plant, described as “state-of-the-art,” would cover 140,000 sq.ft. and is budgeted at $51 million. Construction would start early next year, and manufacturing would begin in 2020, with about 200 employees.
The specific plant operations and equipment types were not reported.
Győr is a city of about 130,000 in northwest Hungary, about 75 miles from Budapest or Vienna, Austria. Dana already operates three plants in Gyõr, and the new project will benefit from a "non-refundable cash grant" from the Hungarian Investment Promotion Agency (HIPA.)
The new plant will produce Dana’s Spicer® AdvanTEK® hypoid or spiral bevel ring-and-pinion gear sets. Dana pointed out that it manufactures primary ring-and-pinion drive gearing for banjo and beam axles, as well as all-wheel-drive systems, and it noted that it in the future it may establish full axle assembly at the Hungarian location.
Dana emphasized the new plant would "support … secured new business," and that the location would allow the company to satisfy the regional needs of its global customers.
"Dana is earning new business in the European marketplace, and to support this we are excited to add an additional gear-manufacturing facility to our footprint," stated Bob Pyle, president of Dana Light Vehicle Driveline Technologies. "This plant is strategically positioned in close proximity to our other Győr operations and will enable us to deliver technologies to our European customers more quickly and cost effectively."
About a year ago Dana opened a new plant in Thailand producing hypoid or spiral bevel ring-and-pinion gear sets, for the Southeast Asian market.
Earlier this year, Dana revealed a $70-million project to expand and improve a plant in Toledo, OH, as a new “high-tech” axle manufacturing operation.
