SUNBURY — A groundbreaking ceremony took place Thursday for a new 42,500-square-foot addition to the Hitachi Astemo plant in Sunbury.

Officials from the City of Sunbury, Delaware County, economic development partner OneColumbus and the contractors joined Hitachi Astemo supervisors and employees for the brief ceremony on a hot summer afternoon during a shift change behind the northwest corner of the plant at 707 W. Cherry St. The Hitachi contingent was led by General Manager of Production Jon Carle, Operations Manager Chuck Hallman, Engineer Sandra Lagos (who will oversee the expansion) and Site Head Jim Wiebe.

“We’ve been here since 1986, and we started production in 1988,” said Wiebe. “We have had 10 plant expansions in 38 years. Our last plant expansion (the extension to the research and development building) was back in 2015, so this has been our longest drought, if you will.”

“We’ve lobbied for some time for continued expansion of the Sunbury site,” said Carle. “Forecasting growth with new and existing customers led us to believe in expanding … our plant capacity by more than 50% in the coming years. As we grow, it’s an opportunity for improvements — logistics, efficiencies, process flow.”

Carle said it will take two months for site preparation and three months for construction, with potential occupancy in late December, weather permitting.

“I’d like to thank everybody for their support and look forward to the continued growth here in Sunbury,” Carle said.

An earlier tour showed how suspension parts for Honda and Subaru automobiles, Honda ATVs, Harley-Davidson and BRP (Can-Am) motorcycles are meticulously machine-tooled from raw material in an orderly north-to-south process on the immaculate Sunbury factory floor. Formerly known as American Showa, Inc., the plant changed names as part of a four-company merger in 2021. In addition to manufacturing, sales and R&D/design take place in Sunbury. Hitachi Astemo employs 250 people in Sunbury, hailing from Delaware, Franklin, Morrow and surrounding counties.

“Today, Hitachi Astemo Americas, Inc. now has more than 20 manufacturing sites in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and Brazil, with R&D and sales sites driving innovation and business growth,” said www.hitachiastemo.com. Regional headquarters are at Farmington Hills, Michigan.

Hitachi Astemo, Ltd. is based in Tokyo, Japan, with a consolidated 123 companies employing 90,000 people. “Hitachi Astemo is a joint venture between Hitachi, Ltd. and Honda Motor Co. (its other major shareholder). Hitachi Astemo is a technology company that develops, manufactures, sells and services automotive and transportation components, as well as industrial machinery and systems,” said a company news release. The name Astemo is derived from “Advanced Sustainable Technologies for Mobility.”

Assistant Editor Gary Budzak photographs and reports on stories in eastern Delaware County and surrounding areas. He can be reached at 740-363-1161.