Caterpillar to build plant in Georgia, create 1,400 jobs

ATLANTA,None — Caterpillar announced plans Friday morning to build a new manufacturing facility in Georgia, bringing an estimated 1,400 jobs to the state.

The 1 million-square-foot facility will be built on an industrial site that spans Clarke and Oconee counties.

Gov. Nathan Deal held a news conference at 10 a.m. to make the announcement.

“This is an extraordinary day for our entire state, and a game-changer for Clarke, Oconee and surrounding counties throughout northeast Georgia,” said Deal. “The excitement and promise of today’s announcement are why we’re fighting so hard to make Georgia the No. 1 place in the nation to do business. Caterpillar will find a happy home here, and our state’s logistics, workforce, speed and efficiency will give the company an edge in the global marketplace. We appreciate Caterpillar’s confidence in Georgia’s workforce and continued investment in our state through this new BCP operation.”

The Georgia facility will manufacture small tractors and excavators.

Caterpillar said it expects to hire locally for most of the positions, using JoinTeamCaterpillar.com to fill the jobs.

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In November, Caterpillar announced plans to shift production from Japan and open a new manufacturing facility in North America to produce small tractors and excavators. The company said its goal was to move production of the equipment closer to its customers in North America and Europe.

"Producing these machines at a North American location will put us in the best possible position to serve our customers in the building construction industry," Mary Bell, vice president of Caterpillar's Building Construction Products division, said when plans for the facility were described in November.

Caterpillar officials had told North Carolina lawmakers that their state was also being considered for the plant, a facility which will now be built in Georgia.

WSBTV