GE's Consumer & Industrial division plans to manufacture high-end energy-efficient front-load washers and dryers at GE's Appliance Park facility in Louisville, Kentucky, U.S., beginning in 2012. GE has been working with the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development and the Metro Louisville government on a package of economic development incentives to encourage the company to expand the Appliance Park operation to increase employment and economic development opportunities in the region.

Production of the new products, together with plans to in-source manufacture of appliance components and to increase the number of engineers at the facility, would result in the creation of more than 430 new jobs at the Louisville operation. When combined with the hybrid water heater jobs announced in 2009, the total number of new GE Appliance jobs announced in 2009 was about 830, further building upon GE's vision of an “American Renewal” fueled by a reinvigorated U.S. manufacturing sector.

In addition to new jobs, GE plans to invest more than US$80 million on the new programs. The state preliminarily approved GE for an incentive package for the hybrid water heater project in May 2009. With the expansion of the original proposal to include production of the new laundry products and appliance component manufacture, the Cabinet for Economic Development has committed to seek approval of an amended package at the authority's January 2010 meeting that will increase the incentives to a total package of $21.5 million. In addition, Metro Louisville provided incentives in the amount of $2.5 million and introduced an ordinance before the Metro Council to amend the funding mechanism to increase the city's incentives.

GE's innovative efficiency technology will enable the new laundry products to meet the proposed new 2014 Energy Star standards. They also will incorporate smart grid technology that will enable these products to communicate with utility smart meters to help reduce energy demand during peak usage times with features that will empower consumers to control their energy consumption and save money in areas where time-of-use pricing is in effect.

The washing machine would go into production in 2012 and the new dryer in 2013. Steam technology, specialty fabric cycles, advanced vibration-reduction technology and washer-dryer communication will deliver great performance and convenience for the consumer. Currently, 90% of GE's front-load washers dryers are manufactured outside the U.S.

Production of the laundry units was the second new product platform to be introduced in Louisville in 2009. The first was the GE hybrid water heater, which is GE's first commercially available smart grid-enabled product. The hybrid water heaters will go into production in mid-2011 as part of an investment program creating approximately 400 jobs. The Energy Star-qualified water heaters will save approximately $320 annually compared to traditional electric water heaters.

For more information, www.ge.com or www.louisvilleky.gov.