The Engines Division of Kawasaki Motors Corp., U.S.A. is consolidating all aspects of its management and product development processes in a single facility in Grand Rapids, Mich. The company is launching a significant renovation of its existing facilities to accommodate the move of the Research and Development Engineering group, along with related functions, from Maryville, Mo. to Grand Rapids.
Maryville, the site of the Kawasaki Motors Manufacturing Corp., U.S.A. engine production facility, has been home to the R&D division since 1995. The move to Grand Rapids “will create a more cohesive and dynamic unit that will allow daily face-to-face interaction between the company’s R&D group, sales, marketing, product management, operational functions, and most importantly our customers,” Rodger Howe, Vice President of the Engines Division, says.
The renovated facility will be designed and constructed to optimize the various functions. It will include an R&D center that, according to Howe, will be “absolutely state of the art.” The building is expected to be ready for total occupancy by the divisions sometime in early to mid-2016. Kawasaki currently markets more than 40 general purpose engines, most of which are produced by Kawasaki Motors Manufacturing Corp., U.S.A., in its Maryville, Mo. facility which has turned out in excess of eight million units.