GM Plant Auction

Shawn Ghormley · Apr 27, 2011

Might be something good here.

State of the Art Transmission Facility - Hilco Webcast Auction

Miguels244 · Apr 27, 2011

Too bad.
This saddens me, I have been in that plant.

adammil1 · Apr 27, 2011

That is sad, to think that once upon a time that plant made 1 B-24 every 50something minutes! Willow Run and the Story of General Motors

It is a shame that the plant almost made it through the automotive down turn I thought that they were finally turning a corner now! What happened?

Oh well I guess if we want to buy an American car it will have to be a Hyundai!

Here's a video of the plant on its last days;
YouTube - GM Willow Run plant in its last days

And another in better days;
YouTube - B-24 Liberator Willow Run Assembly Plant

Adam

Shawn Ghormley · Apr 27, 2011

I wonder what will happen to the building?

nateman · Apr 27, 2011

"I wonder what will happen to the building?"

Good question. I live one town over in Ann Arbor and I strongly suspect that no one is interested in buying that building. Ypsi, as we locals call Ypsilanti is totally trashed. Sadly, the job market there is like Detroit, and half of the other Detroit suburbs.

I wish I had something good to say about Ypsi's future, but...I dont.

gas pumper · Apr 27, 2011

How can a 6 million sq ft plant and all the machinery be redundant?
Don't GM need transmissions anymore?
Even if the operation goes to another country, don't they still need the machinery?

Or is the deal when they outsource that the machinery is bought new in the new country?

But on a history of Willow Run, here's a photo album of WW2 at the plant.
Slideshow

PixMan · Apr 27, 2011

I would imagine that the transmissions are all made by subcontractors now...in Mexico.

That can be some very specialized equipment, run hard and put away wet. Other than some inspection, maintenance and MRO product, I don't think there's much point in going.

Ries · Apr 27, 2011

PixMan said:
I would imagine that the transmissions are all made by subcontractors now...in Mexico.

Actually, Toledo Ohio.
But these days, I think the pay is better in Mexico.

Part of its just the economy of scale- they dont need TWO factories making the same six speed- one factory, with modern CNC machines, can make enough. I bet Toledo isnt running even two shifts, much less 3 like in the old days when Willow Run had 14,000 employees.

Imagine a factory now with 14,000 employees- you could make all the tranny's for the entire world.

SIP6A · Apr 28, 2011

I have worked at the Toledo GM transmission plant for 25 years less a 2 years 7 month layoff. I also worked at Willow Run last summer for five months. All this time as a Toolmaker.

As to why the plant closed that is question that would take many pages to answer. In my opinion the biggest reason was it's size. There was 500,000 square feet in one room. Now that part wasn't so bad but what killed it was this room was at least 75 feet high. So you were heating the 12 feet you used plus the 63 feet that was just dead space. That had to be a huge cost ever month during the heating season.

Also the way we build transmissions has changed we are much more productive than we were even five years ago. Toledo at its peak was making 8500 units a day with 4000 people a little over two units per person per day. Today we are building about 4000 units per day with 1500 people. That's 2.7 units per person per day. We are now working three shifts manufacturing and two shifts assembly

As for the building it will probable be torn down. There is far more value in the scrap steel than in a building. It was a neat place to work there are miles of corridors to explore.
I wouldn't put much hope in going to the auction. This is the third sale anything you would want to own was sold at the first two auctions. Whats left is some really worn out machinery.

Todd

Ries · Apr 28, 2011

4000 units a day is what- a bit over a million a year, depending on whether you work 5 day or 7 day weeks, and depending on holidays?
GM only sold a bit over 2 million cars in the USA last year- and dont they have more than one transmission for all those models?

Which means that, even though I was wrong and you do run 3 shifts, the one factory is definitely capable of supplying all of GM's needs for one model of tranny- and two, maximum three, factories could make all the trannies you need for the whole country.

With 4500 employees for three. In the 70's, at its peak, Willow Run was supposed to have had more than 3 times that many people. Of course, there are other variables, and I am sure they made other things too, but still, a rough 1/3 of the amount of employees making a similar amount of product tells us a lot about why we have so few manufacturing jobs these days.

Does GM send any transmissions to China from the US, or are all the Chinese ones made there?

SIP6A · Apr 28, 2011

To the best of my knology what is being sold in Chine is being made in China.

GM builds transmissions in Toledo Ohio, Warren MI, Windsor, Ont

In the days that Willow Run had 14,000 employees not all of them were directly connected with making and assembling parts. There was a huge Tool & Die operation there was also large shops for cutter grinding and machine repair that's all gone, corporate wide all outsourced. Most of what you would consider part of a manufacturing plant isn't done in house anymore. In our plant we have no engineering to speak of, personal is 4 people no purchasing dept all gone.

Dawgee · Apr 28, 2011

What i thought was kind of funny was you watch the begining of that video and you see a Ford truck and a bunch of forgein cars in the parking lot.

Milacron · Apr 28, 2011

SIP6A said:
I wouldn't put much hope in going to the auction. This is the third sale anything you would want to own was sold at the first two auctions. Whats left is some really worn out machinery.

Yeah I went thru the flyer and it all looked pretty suspect. There were some machines that sounded interesting but no pictures. But the usual reason for no pictures of expensive CNC machines in auction flyers is because they looked too bad to show in a flyer.

cash · Apr 28, 2011

I was just talking with an ex Mattison guy about this auction today.

He spent alot of time in the facility.

He said the size of the building was unbelievable. When you went to the offices they just appeared to go on forever.

Once these shops close the jobs are gone forever.

67Cuda · Apr 28, 2011

Miguels244 said:
Too bad.
This saddens me, I have been in that plant.

Looks like GM needed to make a payment to the Obama Administration.

Tom

10 fingers · Apr 29, 2011

sad to see

I spent the better part of seven years at HydraMatic as a machine tool service engineer. The facility was beyond huge. There was a hallway upstairs in the engineering area that was so long, it converged on itself and disappeared in the distance.

The shear number of machines and tooling had to be seen to be believed. With each brand often from a different city supporting tens of thousands of machinists throughout the country. The economic trickledown effect had to be classic.

Alternatively, the UAW bureaucracy I witnessed made my head spin. To work one a machine I would often need a dozen different union people. One person was an electrician, another for set up, another for hydraulics, another for mechanical work, another for tooling, etc., etc. Thirty-four years ago, unskilled operators were making $16/hr with double and triple time often available. Reflecting back, it's a wonder they ever made a profit.

Gary E · Apr 29, 2011

10 fingers said:
I spent the better part of seven years at HydraMatic as a machine tool service engineer. The facility was beyond huge. There was a hallway upstairs in the engineering area that was so long, it converged on itself and disappeared in the distance.

The shear number of machines and tooling had to be seen to be believed. With each brand often from a different city supporting tens of thousands of machinists throughout the country. The economic trickledown effect had to be classic.

Alternatively, the UAW bureaucracy I witnessed made my head spin. To work one a machine I would often need a dozen different union people. One person was an electrician, another for set up, another for hydraulics, another for mechanical work, another for tooling, etc., etc. Thirty-four years ago, unskilled operators were making $16/hr with double and triple time often available. Reflecting back, it's a wonder they ever made a profit.

I know what you mean...
Back in the mid 60's I was a Field Serviceman with Cincinnati Mill, and was installing several machines in a Mich GM Plant... This required rigers, electricians to fish the wires through the proper places and since there was a hydraulic unit, needed those guys to. While all this was going on a fellow was installing the wood block floor and he looked up at me and said.. "I bet your making a lot doing that job?" and then he mentioned a number that was so high I thought nope, no one can make that much money... Then he told me what he was making... I was floored... almost asked him if he had another hatchet, can I help?

thruthefence · Apr 29, 2011

""I wonder what will happen to the building?""

Turn it into a Mosque?

behindpropellers · Apr 29, 2011

I heard wal mart is buying the building to store all of its junk from China.

Miguels244 · Apr 29, 2011

thruthefence said:
""I wonder what will happen to the building?""

Turn it into a Mosque?

I can see that for parts of Detroit.

GM Plant Auction

Stainless

Diamond

Titanium

Stainless

Cast Iron

Cast Iron

Diamond

Diamond

Titanium

Diamond

Titanium

Aluminum

Administrator

Titanium

Banned

Hot Rolled

Diamond

Titanium

Stainless

Diamond

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