WEST POINT, Ga. — The assembly lines at Kia Motors Manufacturing Georgia plant stopped Friday, just long enough for the announcement of the grand opening to echo through the cavernous buildings.
Byung Mo Ahn, group president and chief executive officer of Kia Motors America and KMMG, said the plant was the most advanced of its kind in the U.S.
“Kia is improving the lives of millions of people in the United States,” Ahn said.
Gov. Sonny Perdue, state and U.S. congressmen, Kia Motors executives, Korean diplomats and workers in black polos gathered to celebrate the grand opening of the automaker’s 2.2 million-square-foot plant in West Point, Ga., which builds the 2011 Sorento CUV.
Tom Loveless, vice president of sales for KMA, said sales of the four-door crossover utility vehicle, first offered in January, have been strong in its first two months.
Mong Koo Chung, chairman and chief executive officer of Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group, said the new plant would help the automaker respond to the changing markets and stands as a model for the company’s future.
“I believe the plant will play a leading role in the revitalization of the American auto industry,” Chung said.
Korean Ambassador Duk-Soo Han said Kia has become a leader in the global market.
“Kia Motors Manufacturing Georgia does not merely produce cars, it produces jobs, too,” Han said.
The plant is in the process of hiring for a second shift of workers who would begin work in mid-summer, said Randy Jackson, human resources director for KMMG.
Jackson said 30,000 have applied for the production and maintenance positions.
Studies are also underway to identify a second model to be produced at the plant.
Jackson said more suppliers would potentially move to the area with the addition of another model, and that employment may increase to about 3,500 at the plant. But for the foreseeable future, employment will be about 2,500, he said.
Perdue said he was in awe of what he saw as he toured the plant, which began construction in 2007.
“These are the days that will stand out in my memory,” he said of the effort to bring the Korean automaker to Georgia.
Perdue said the state was reaping the rewards of its long relationship with South Korea. Perdue added the company is expected to have $4 billion in economic impact in the state.
“You have literally transformed an undeveloped tract of land into a world-class auto manufacturing facility,” Perdue said.
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