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Spartan Motors Constructing New Truck Assembly Plant

Pictured at the Spartan Motors and Isuzu North America groundbreaking ceremony, from left to right, are Shaun Skinner, executive vice president and general manager, ICTA; Shigeji Sigimoto, president, INAC; Daryl Adams, president and CEO, Spartan Motors; and Steve Guillaume, president, Spartan Specialty Vehicles. PR Newswire photo.

CHARLOTTE, Mich. — Spartan Motors, Inc. has invested $5.5 million in a new 85,000-square-foot truck assembly plant in Charlotte, Michigan, that will manufacture Isuzu’s new F-Series trucks. The company, a designer and manufacturer of specialty vehicles, specialty chassis, and vehicle bodies and parts, held a groundbreaking ceremony in April to recognize the investment.

Isuzu North America Corp. recently expanded its relationship with Spartan by selecting the firm to produce the new line of Isuzu trucks. The F-Series trucks will extend Isuzu’s product offering into Class 6 on-highway commercial trucks. This decision to further expand the alliance, which began in 2011 with the production of Isuzu’s gasoline-powered N-Series trucks, demonstrates Isuzu’s “continued confidence in Spartan’s quality, people, flexibility, and expertise,” according to a release from Spartan Motors.

“Today’s groundbreaking ceremony represents a significant milestone for Spartan, as we expand our manufacturing footprint and bring new jobs to Michigan,” said Daryl Adams, president and CEO of Spartan Motors, in the release. “Measurable growth in our relationships with existing clients, such as Isuzu, further confirms our multi-year strategic plan is driving improved performance and will continue to pay dividends for Spartan over the long-term.”

The new plant will be part of Spartan’s Charlotte manufacturing campus, and it will be dedicated solely to the production of Isuzu vehicles. This new state-of-the-art manufacturing facility will have a flexible production line that can be easily reconfigured to accommodate the assembly of multiple product lines. Further, the production of the F-Series trucks by Spartan at this new plant will bring new jobs to the Michigan workforce.

Spartan employs approximately 1,700 associates at facilities in Michigan, Pennsylvania, South Dakota and Indiana. The firm reported sales of $550 million in 2015.

“We are excited for the opportunity to further grow our business relationship with Isuzu,” said Steve Guillaume, Spartan Motors division president, specialty vehicles, in a statement. “Contract manufacturing is a core competency of Spartan. This is another great opportunity for us to broaden our portfolio in this key area.”