International Truck and Engine Corp has completely revamped a 550,000-square-foot assembly facility in Garland TX, a facility that began producing trucks for International in 1997. Two years later, International decided to make Garland the launch site of the International 7000 Series and International 8500 tractor. The plant ramped-up production in October 2001 with 15 trucks per day, and International expects this rate to increase continually throughout 2001.
The Garland facility is manufacturing the International 7000 Series trucks for the government, construction, and waste industries, the new International 8500 tractor for the regional hauling business, as well as the International 5000i Series of severe-service trucks. Improvements to the plant include:
-
Simplified, efficient moving lines for assembly.
-
Emissions-friendly paint systems.
-
Updated computer system streamlines plant operations.
-
A new cooling system throughout the plant.
-
A separate building for chemicals and isolation floor guards for spills.
-
Smart resource allocation.