On April 5, Dana broke ground on a state-of-the-art gear manufacturing facility in Europe to support new business in the region. The 140,000 square-foot facility in Győr, Hungary will provide customers in the region with access to Dana's advanced design, engineering, and manufacturing expertise to support their sourcing initiatives and technology strategies.
The company is investing approximately 46 million euros (Rs 351 crore) in the new facility, which will begin production in early 2018 employing approximately 200 highly qualified associates when full production is reached in 2020.
The facility will produce Spicer AdvanTEK hypoid or spiral bevel ring and pinion gear sets. Dana manufactures gears for traditional banjo and beam axles, as well as all-wheel-drive systems. Full axle assembly on the site is possible in the future.
The company's AdvanTEK line of gears offers best-in-class noise, vibration, and harshness (NVH) performance, as well as greater power density in a compact package. When integrated into an axle, these gear sets are responsible for transmitting driving torque to the wheels – delivering improved fuel efficiency, enhanced vehicle performance, and maximum durability for the complete spectrum of light and commercial vehicles.
The new plant will serve as the company's fourth operation in Hungary. The decision to develop another plant within the country was made possible by the Hungarian Investment Promotion Agency (HIPA), which awarded Dana development grants and tax incentives.
"We are excited to be building this new gear-manufacturing facility to support new business growth in Europe," said Bob Pyle, president of Dana Light Vehicle Driveline Technologies. "This plant is strategically positioned in close proximity to our existing Győr operations and will enable us to deliver technologies to our European customers more quickly and cost effectively.