Dearborn, Michigan-based Ford Motor Co. said it will invest $195 million and create 3,000 jobs over the next five years for a new global technology and business center in Chennai, India. The site will feature 2.5 million square feet of floor space which will house engineers, IT, finance, accounting, data analytics and manufacturing engineering personnel. Ford said it will include a wide range of labs and testing facilities for complete vehicle and component testing.
The company has plans to consolidate its 9,000 existing employees across six India operations at the six-building, 28-acre campus. When complete in early 2019, the Chennai campus, with some 12,000 employees, will become Ford’s second-largest employment center after its campus in Dearborn which is undergoing a 10-year renovation, reports the Detroit News.
“India is not only a vibrant market for cars and new mobility ideas, it also is rich with talent, technical expertise and ingenuity,” Bill Ford Jr., Executive Chairman at Ford, who was in India for the announcement, said. “This new center will help us attract the best and brightest, and make Chennai a true hub of innovation for Ford around the world.”
Ford makes small cars and engines in India, and exports them to other global countries.
