FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (June 24)—Goodyear plans to invest more than $17.7 million in its Kelly-Springfield Tire Co. plant in Fayetteville to upgrade the facility. The modernization project tentatively is slated for completion by year-end, a Goodyear spokeswoman said.
"These improvements allow the plant to adapt its operations to meet market demands for premium products such as 20-inch tires and high-performance tires," according to Jim Konneker, plant manager at Fayetteville.
As consumer demand trends toward larger diameter tires, the investment will allow the Fayetteville facility to produce bigger tires not only for the Kelly-Springfield brand but also for its custom brand accounts, Konneker said.
Konneker noted that the capital investment will not create new jobs at the factory, increase the size of the facility or boost daily capacity. Goodyear employs about 2,650 at the 2 million-sq.-ft. plant, one of the company's largest.