Workers recently celebrated the 50-year history of a heavy-equipment factory in Pennsylvania.
Ingersoll-Rand originally employed 50 workers at a factory in Shippensburg, Penn.; now Volvo Construction Equipment employs more than 650 people at the plant. The factory and its employees marked its 50-year anniversary on Sept. 12 and were joined by the AEM Manufacturing Express as part of its member tour.
Ingersoll-Rand employees circa 1974.Volvo Construction Equipment
According to Volvo CE:
Staff gathered to celebrate the milestone Thursday with an AEM Manufacturing Express bus tour. The festivities included a barbecue, backyard games and the sharing of stories from decades past.
“We have invested heavily in our facilities, staff and facilities here in Shippensburg. The work performed at this site has a significant impact on our clients, our industry and the local community,” said Gustavo Casagrandi, site operations manager. “It is gratifying to meet today to reflect on all this. »
Combining this birthday party with the natural AEM scale.
“We are proud to be members of MEA, so it is wonderful to celebrate our employees’ contributions to the structural and manufacturing industries,” Casagrandi said.
The “AEM Manufacturing Express” is an interactive cellular tour that visits 80 member brands in 20 states. It is the largest public engagement initiative in the association’s history, designed to celebrate the U. S. appliance manufacturing industry and the 2. 3 million employees who “build, power and feed the world. “
“We are thrilled to participate in this 50th anniversary birthday party along with the network’s leaders and supporters,” said Megan Tanel, President of AEM. “This field trip has been a glorious opportunity to tell the stories of others in our industry. “
The AEM and Volvo groups invited local policymakers to the occasion to raise awareness of the bipartisan policies that the appliance production industry and its employees have.
For more than 50 years, the Shippensburg plant has been manufacturing general-purpose road structures and structural devices, starting with compactors, which remain a priority. Proximity to Interstate 81, a primary production and distribution hall, and a highly professional worker base put the domain in the hands of the Volvo Group, which acquired it in 2007 as part of the acquisition of Ingersoll-Rand’s highway division.
Volvo has made significant investments over the past 17 years, adding a $30 million investment in 200,000 square feet. expanding its operational footprint in 2010. In addition to generating wheel loaders, soil compactors and asphalt compactors, operations have a regional excavator that completes the medium and a device that reconstructs the medium moment. The facility is the North American sales and marketing headquarters, a purchasing and supply management center, and the design and engineering center for compaction equipment.
Volvo’s Customer Experience Centre and 40-acre test floor opened in 2014 and house a demonstration fleet of more than 70 aircraft spanning the company’s full product range. In 2023, a wing of the technical education center added device maintenance bays and study rooms where intermediary technicians and sales groups can learn about Volvo’s newest devices and technologies, adding electrical appliances. The site welcomes more than 10,000 Volvo CE intermediaries and consumers annually.
Over the past 50 years, roadbuilding and general-purpose construction equipment has been manufactured at the Shippensburg factory beginning with compactors, which have remained a focus.Volvo Construction Equipment
Volvo CE participates with the Franklin County Technology and Career Center in an educational program for commercial personnel and has partnered with Shippensburg University for a new engineering program. The company employs approximately 50 interns each year and Penn State University is a valued educational venue of the Volvo Group. Volvo CE also works with the national and Pennsylvania chapters of SkillsUSA for college, senior, and post-secondary students and professionals enrolled in education systems for trade, technical, and career services occupations.
“It is an honor to work in such a prestigious location and to continue sharing Volvo’s commitment to training, safety and sustainability with our community,” said Casagrandi. “I can’t wait to see what the next 50 years will bring to our people. ” and our industry. “
History of the Shippensburg Site
1974: Start of production of machinery with compaction products.
1980: A 46,000-sq.-ft. expansion upgrades machining, fabrication and welding capabilities.
1988: A 38,000-sq.-ft. expansion boosts assembly space.
1992: A 54,000-sq.-ft. expansion adds to assembly space again.
1993: The 49,000 sq. ft. the largest is built.
1998: 21,000 square feet. The expansion provides more area for drum manufacturing.
2007: Volvo CE acquires the Ingersoll-Rand facilities.
2010: A $30 million, 200,000-sq.-ft. factory expansion is completed.
2011: The Region Americas sales and marketing team relocates to the site.
2013: The wheel loader production line begins operation.
2013: A new expansion is inaugurated.
2014: Inauguration of the Volvo Customer Experience Center.
2023: The Technical Training Center opens.
2024: Volvo and AEM celebrate 50 years of aircraft production in Shippensburg.