Buffalo, N.Y. (Manufacturing.net) — At General Motors’ Tonawanda Engine Plant in Buffalo, N.Y., a $400 million investment in advanced manufacturing techniques will allow the company to produce 1,000 Gen 5 Small Block engines daily — a 4.3L V-6, 5.3L V-8 and two variants of a 6.2L V-8. The new engines will power nine GM models by 2015, starting with the 2014 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra pickups, plus the 2014 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray.
Production began at the Tonawanda plant began in 1938, with an emphasis on high-performance engines for vintage Chevrolet muscle cars and Corvettes. It is also the birthplace of the Small Block engine, which went into production in 1955. This year, the plant will build its 71 millionth engine, which currently includes the Ecotec 2.0L Turbo and 2.5L engines that power the 2013 Chevrolet Malibu and the 2013 Cadillac ATS.
Additions to the plant include new coordinate measuring machines that check machining with greater speed and efficiency. A Zeiss camera can examine more than 11,000 data points within 2.5 microns, while a Hummel surface finish machine checks finish textures at less than a micron. A new track-and-trace system incorporates that data, plus assembly data, for better quality.