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AIDT, Mercedes-Benz partnership going strong after two decades in Alabama
TUSCALOOSA, Alabama – When the first production jobs at Mercedes-Benz’s new Alabama plant were advertised, an avalanche of applications followed – 63,000 to be precise. In stepped AIDT, the state’s workforce training agency, and a partnership was born. AIDT has been with Mercedes on every step of the automaker’s journey in Alabama over the past…
Industry reporter talks Mercedes impact, future of Alabama auto sector
BIRMINGHAM, Alabama — For the past six years, Dawn Kent Azok, a reporter for the Alabama Media Group, has covered the twists and turns of the Alabama auto sector. Reporting on scores of events and interviewing people both in the drivers’ seat and the executive chair, she has told story after story of how one industry…
Alabama Mercedes worker: ‘This job has changed me as a person.’
TUSCALOOSA, Alabama – Tanya Cabiness was 22 when she stepped into the Mercedes-Benz plant back on July 7, 1997, not long after the first M-Class sport utility vehicle made in Alabama rolled off the factory’s assembly line. Cabiness had been to college and previously worked in a mobile home manufacturing facility. For her, this place…
Mercedes accelerating Alabama operation with two new models, workforce expansion
TUSCALOOSA, Alabama – For Mercedes-Benz in Alabama, it all began with the M-Class, a groundbreaking automobile that’s credited with creating the premium SUV segment. Then the automaker added the GL-Class sport utility and the R-Class crossover to an Alabama line-up now being produced in record numbers. So it’s no surprise that Mercedes is accelerating its…
Auto supplier HTNA adds new Alabama production facility, 100 jobs
JASPER, Alabama – HTNA, a tier-one auto supplier that manufactures carpet and interior trim components for Honda, Toyota and other automakers, plans to hire 100 workers after constructing a new Alabama production facility. The company said its new, state-of-the-art plant is located in the Bevill Industrial Park in Jasper, less than two miles from the…
Alabama Launchpad funds innovative start-up companies
BIRMINGHAM, Alabama – Imagine no longer having to worry about your cellular phone battery becoming drained, thanks to a new device that allows it to recharge wirelessly without the need to plug in to a power outlet. An Alabama start-up company’s product would harvest radio frequency waves and convert them into electricity that can be…
Mercedes decision lifted Alabama international business profile
TUSCALOOSA, Alabama – When automaker Mercedes-Benz announced in 1993 that it had picked a 966-acre tract of land near Vance, Ala. – population 300 – to house its first assembly facility outside of Germany, the news instantly raised Alabama’s profile in the international business community, according to economic developers. “It was clearly Day One for…
Commerce Secretary Greg Canfield: Mercedes-Benz launched new era for Alabama
MONTGOMERY, Alabama — Twenty years ago, on Sept. 30, 1993, Mercedes-Benz announced plans to build its first U.S. factory in Vance, Ala. In just two decades, Alabama has transformed from a state with virtually no experience in auto production into the country’s fourth largest auto producer, churning out nearly 900,000 vehicles a year. Mercedes has done…
Mercedes-Benz set foundation for Alabama auto industry growth
TUSCALOOSA, Alabama – The three-pointed star of Mercedes-Benz is still casting a glow over Alabama 20 years after the global automotive giant picked the state for its first U.S. passenger car factory. Mercedes’ decision, announced in Tuscaloosa on Sept. 30, 1993, represents the moment the foundation was laid for an auto industry that continues to…
Alabama used teamwork, training and trust to win landmark Mercedes-Benz plant
BIRMINGHAM, Alabama – Alabama’s pursuit of Mercedes-Benz’s first U.S. auto plant featured code names, clandestine meetings and plenty of behind-the-scenes drama, but it was teamwork, training and trust that landed the groundbreaking project, according to leaders who were involved in the recruitment. Next week, Mercedes and Alabama will celebrate 20 years since the company announced…