Progress Report on SBE’s New Manufacturing Facility
After officially breaking ground on its new high‐volume manufacturing facility this past April, SBE’s $18 million project is well underway and still on schedule to begin first move-in by the end of 2010!
The new facility, located in Barre, Vermont’s Wilson Industrial Park, has seen the following progress:
- Completion of site exaction
- Access roads in place
- Completion of the plant’s underground utilities (electrical and sewer)
- Placement of storm drainage
- Plant foundation and foundation backfilling nearing completion
- Erection of steel structure
The 52,800ft2 state of the art manufacturing facility will be dedicated to the transportation market. By strategically planning the production floor layout to mirror the production process, SBE will reduce both wasted time and materials, and maximize efficiency. Integrating private offices, work stations, conference rooms and a large lunch/training room, the 13,000 ft2 office space has been designed with one core value in mind: “creating an enjoyable workspace for employees”. The construction services firm working on SBE’s new facility is Barre, Vermont based, E.F. Wall & Associates.
Earlier in the year, SBE Inc. won a matching grant of $9.1 million under the U.S. Department of Energy’s Electrical Drive Vehicle Battery and Component Manufacturing Initiative. This major piece of funding was awarded to help SBE to expand its electric car technology manufacturing and is part of President Obama’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. SBE’s new manufacturing plant facility will have capacity to produce Power Ring Film Capacitors™ for over 100,000 plug-in hybrid and electric drive vehicles within three years.
