-->

Bright Auto to manufacture hybrid vehicle in Mishawaka

By Sam Brattain The Herald Bulletin The Herald Bulletin Fri Oct 28, 2011, 11:49 PM EDT

ANDERSON, Ind. — Bright Automotive’s plug-in IDEA hybrid automobile will be assembled in Mishawaka, the Anderson-based company announced Friday.

Bright entered into an exclusive agreement with AM General LLC to be the assembler for IDEA, an electric work truck for commercial and government fleets.

AM General previously assembled the Humvee at the Commercial Assembly Plant in Mishawaka. The vehicle could be available for sale to government and industry buyers by 2014.

Mishawaka City Planner Ken Prince said he was “very excited” about the announcement, considering the factory stopped making Hummers in January 2009.

“We look forward to finalizing our funding to kick-start the introduction of our world-class PHEV work truck, saving U.S. businesses millions of dollars and creating new jobs in the heart of America,” Reuben Munger, Bright Automotive CEO, said in a statement.

The South Bend Tribune reported that the partnership would create 300 jobs.

However, production is contingent on funding that uses private commitments and a loan through the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Vehicles Manufacturing Loan Program.

Bright’s vice president of corporate strategy, Michael Brylawski, said the company is almost three years into the loan program.

Bright claims its IDEA can go more than 30 miles on an all-electric range and  gets 35 miles per gallon in standard hybrid mode.

The choice of Mishawaka, over Anderson, came primarily from that northern Indiana’s city’s existing plant structure, officials said. In January, Bright announced it was developing a technical center for engineers at Rochester Hills, Mich.

“(AM General) is a world-class, deeply experienced manufacturer of vehicles,” Brylawski said.

AM General began assembling wheelchair-accessible vehicles, known as the MV-1, last month, the Associated Press reports.

Brylawski said it was important to find a highly competent manufacturer so the company could focus its power train operation in Anderson.

Bright’s local facilities are housed at the Flagship on the city’s southwest side.

Brylawski said he could not disclose the number of vehicles estimated to be manufactured at the facility. However, the Associated Press reported that the factory plans to build 1,000 MV-1s this year, about 10,000 next year and 25,000 to 30,000 the year after that.

On Friday, Chuck Staley, CEO of Flagship Enterprise Center, said that selecting Mishawaka was a logical move for Bright.

”We would have loved to have it here,” Staley said. “On the upside, it is in America and it is in Indiana and it does go to a community like Anderson that has had its share of economic difficulties.”

“AM General’s experience in the assembly of alternative powertrains and lightweight materials, combined with our decades of vehicle manufacturing know-how, are a perfect fit for the production of this next-generation vehicle,” Rick Smith, President of AM General Commercial Business, said in a statement. “Our ability to leverage a strong management team, proven production facilities and an experienced UAW workforce, gives Bright a low-risk manufacturing solution.”

Scott L. Miley, The Herald Bulletin’s associate editor for features, contributed to this story.