Consultants Forum Advertise
Subscribe
Close

  • Free for qualified executives and consultants to industry

  • Receive quarterly issues of Area Development Magazine and special market report and directory issues

Subscribe Now
Renew

Area Development - Site Selection, Facility Planning and Workforce Development

Subaru Invests $2 Million in Ypsilanti Township, Michigan, American Center for Mobility

01/22/2018
Subaru will invest $2 million to support the American Center for Mobility, a world-class testing hub for connected and automated vehicles technologies at Willow Run in Ypsilanti Township, Michigan.

“The U.S market has long been a very important part of the success of Subaru, and as so, it is a major goal of ours to create a product that will be appealing to the U.S. customer,” said Kaminaga Shirakawa, Vice President of Subaru Research and Development. “We are looking forward to working with ACM in the future development of the facility, and using this impressive resource to provide the highest quality product possible.”

ACM’s founders include AT&T, Visteon Corporation, Toyota, Ford and Hyundai America Technical Center Inc. To date, ACM has secured $110 million to construct the first phase of the $135 million proving grounds and facility. Construction on the next phase of the facility is slated to begin spring 2018 and will feature an urban driving environment, followed by ACM headquarters and a tech park.

Just over a year after breaking ground on the 500-acre site that once housed a World War II bomber plant, the long-awaited ACM opened its doors for testing last month, with Visteon testing its DriveCore autonomous driving platform and Toyota Research Institute engineers kicking off their orientation and driver training.

“It has been an exciting year for ACM and we are pleased to start 2018 welcoming Subaru as a sponsor as we continue to solidify ACM as the global destination for testing CAV and mobility technologies,” said John Maddox, President & CEO of the Center. “Thanks to the support and hard work from our founders and sponsors, automotive technology leaders and the State of Michigan, ACM is on the leading edge of getting self-driving cars safely on the world’s highways and roads.”

Governor Rick Snyder said. “The American Center for Mobility is not only revolutionizing the mobility industry, but it also reinforces Michigan’s place as the center of automotive and technology innovation helping to accelerate new job growth across the state.”

“The advancements in technology and quality of life for many that will be made as a result of the testing being done at The American Center for Mobility secures Michigan’s leadership in revolutionizing the global transportation landscape,” Lt. Governor Brian Calley. “The leadership and innovation from a diverse group of stakeholders is at the core of the success of ACM and what is setting our state apart in this sector.”

The Center is a joint initiative with the State of Michigan founded in partnership with the Michigan Department of Transportation, the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, the University of Michigan, Business Leaders for Michigan and Ann Arbor SPARK. The federally designated proving ground provides myriad real-world environments with the ability to test under a range of driving conditions and infrastructure that includes a 2.5-mile highway loop, a 700-foot curved tunnel, two double overpasses, intersections and roundabouts.

Exclusive Research