Yanmar Compact Equipment North America, encompassing the Yanmar Compact Equipment and ASV brands, broke ground on a 32,000-sq.-ft. expansion of its facility in Grand Rapids, Minnesota.
The company says the expansion will greatly increase manufacturing capacity and allow for Yanmar compact track loaders to be manufactured alongside ASV compact track loaders.
“We’ve talked a lot about expansion plans over the past year to our customers, dealers and those we visited with at ConExpo, so it is thrilling to break ground and see those plans come to fruition,” says Tate Johnson, president of Yanmar CE North America. “This project is ultimately about better serving our customers, both through expanded manufacturing capabilities and increased staffing to make sure their needs are met.”
The expansion will allow for the manufacturing of Yanmar’s new compact track loaders while continuing to manufacture ASV compact track loaders at the same facility. Additionally, company executives project to add hundreds of jobs over the next five years.
The new section of the facility will house a paint system that is expected to increase paint capacity by up to three times, the company says. Yanmar says a new powder paint system will be more efficient and have less environmental impact.
Yanmar also expects to double its parts manufacturing capacity versus the previously occupied space.
The company expects the project to be completed next spring.