General Motors Making Production Changes at LDT

General Motors held an ‘all peoples’ meeting at 4:45 this morning at the Lansing Delta Township Assembly Plant and were told that when they come back from a 4 week production shutdown on June 12^th, 2017, they will only be running two shifts instead of the current three. My understanding is that 1,100 workers will be laid off.

My source also says:

"The last 'regular' GMC Acadia on (the) current Lambda platform will be built by the end of the month (we have less than 3,000 of them to build out). Springhill, TN is building the smaller Acadia, but LDT will continue to build a "very deluxe" version of the Acadia that still seats up to 8 passengers. On May 15th LDT begins the changeover to the new C1Y platform (you've probably seen the pictures of the Chevrolet, and the Buick is even nicer) which is more "truck-like".

This change was because Cadillac wanted a vehicle in our segment size because it is the hottest segment in GM. Our new C1Ys are basically downsized Escalades, right down to the vehicle's name location high up on the front doors. You can read between the lines here. We're having a few issues in the assembling of the new vehicle, so until we get them solved, we'll continue with just 2 vehicles on 2 shifts, unless the new ones sell even better than the current ones. Shift times have not been determined yet, but its not uncommon to have a 10 hour gap between starts in case a shift has to work overtime.

This announcement was very last second and lasted less than 5 minutes. Not sure why they didn't wait until more details would be available, but GM works in mysterious ways. Will let you know if I find anything out that has not already been reported."

Here is the official press release from General Motors that I received at 9:25AM today:

Media Statement Regarding Lansing Delta Township Shift Removal

General Motors today (March 6, 2017) announced changes to production plans at its Lansing Delta Township (LDT), Michigan assembly plant. In the second quarter of 2016 GM selected the Spring Hill plant as the site to build the all-new GMC Acadia – a move that resulted in approximately 800 new jobs in Spring Hill. As a result, the Lansing Delta Township plant will cease production of the previous generation in May 2017. As a result of this routine product cycle conclusion, the third shift will be suspended.

The Buick Enclave and Chevrolet Traverse will continue to be built at Lansing Delta Township as part of GM’s $583 million in investments in the facility since 2014. All-new versions of both models will be built at LDT this year. The new Buick Enclave and Chevrolet Traverse enter the market at a time when crossovers have become the most vibrant, dynamic and fast-growing models of the industry.

GM Communications Representative Erin Davis also stated the following:

There are some interesting comments in the (initial) story that are uninformed.

This change was because Cadillac wanted a vehicle in our segment size because it is the hottest segment in GM. Our new C1Ys are basically downsized Escalades, right down to the vehicle’s name location high up on the front doors. You can read between the lines here. We’re having a few issues in the assembling of the new vehicle, so until we get them solved, we’ll continue with just 2 vehicles on 2 shifts, unless the new ones sell even better than the current ones. Shift times have not been determined yet, but its not uncommon to have a 10 hour gap between starts in case a shift has to work overtime.

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News from General Motors LDT Plant This Morning