Caterpillar Plans Engine Plant In Georgia

A Caterpillar Inc. joint venture announced plans Aug. 29 to build a diesel engine facility in Georgia. Perkins Shibaura Engines, a joint venture between Perkins Engines Co. Ltd., which is a Caterpillar company, and Japan’s Ishikawajima Shibaura Machinery Co. Ltd., is slated to begin production in Griffin, Ga., in May 2004 with approximately 25 employees. Workers there will produce the Perkins 400 Series of two-, three- and four-cylinder, liquid-cooled, naturally aspirated and turbo-charged indirect-injection engines. "We believe [the 400 Series] popularity will increase dramatically over the next couple of years as more original equipment manufacturers gain first-hand experience with the engines," says Mike Baunton, Caterpillar vice president and president of Perkins Engines. "This new plant is being built to meet significant and increasing customer demand in the United States." The Griffin plant will mirror a Perkins joint venture plant in England, which will continue to produce 400 Series engines for the international market. Caterpillar is headquartered in Peoria, Ill.