* New York Times…
As it prepares to deliver its first electric pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles this year, Rivian has spent around $1.5 billion renovating and expanding a factory once owned by Mitsubishi. On a typical day the 3.3-million-square-foot plant hosts several hundred construction workers alongside more than 2,500 workers employed by the company, which expects to eventually double its local head count.
The effects are hard to miss in Normal and nearby Bloomington, a metropolitan area of about 170,000. Hotels are frequently booked up, pandemic or not; hundreds of housing lots are being developed; and many employers looking to hire a full-time plumber are basically out of luck. […]
The ramp-up has made labor, already in short supply during the pandemic, even more scarce. A branch of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, which has helped contractors like Mr. Mosier staff up, says it has fully booked the roughly 280 licensed union electricians in the area.
To meet the demand, the union brought in a few hundred electricians from elsewhere in the country this year.
A nearby community college started a program this fall to train electric vehicle technicians, and Illinois State University, which abuts Uptown, is building an engineering school partly in response to Rivian.
- OneMan - Monday, Sep 13, 21 @ 12:28 pm:
The whole story is worth a read
- Dan Johnson - Monday, Sep 13, 21 @ 12:29 pm:
That’s awesome
- Grandson of Man - Monday, Sep 13, 21 @ 12:45 pm:
That is fantastic. So happy for that part of the state, and it’s a very nice part to visit (especially now with a newly legalized product).
The state is going in the green energy direction as we speak. It fits very well with a company like Rivian.
- Moe Berg - Monday, Sep 13, 21 @ 12:46 pm:
“No one would even take the plant if we gave it to them, because our regulations are so hostile to business and our taxes are so high,” [former Republican Governor Bruce] Rauner said [in 2018].
- Socially DIstant Watcher - Monday, Sep 13, 21 @ 12:50 pm:
@Moe: Right on
- hisgirlfriday - Monday, Sep 13, 21 @ 12:55 pm:
Here’s hoping they can lock down the Samsung plant too and keep things on the upswing for Central Illinois.
- Flying Elvis'-Utah Chapter - Monday, Sep 13, 21 @ 12:57 pm:
Greg Bishop-”Taxpayer dollars used to train workers at local auto plant.”
With statement from Ted Dabrowski about how this will cost property and restaurant owners.
- Blue Dog - Monday, Sep 13, 21 @ 1:10 pm:
I have mixed emotions. Obviously great employment opportunities. Great for the local and state economies. But I am scared silly for my UAW brothers and sisters.
- Gene Masseth - Monday, Sep 13, 21 @ 1:25 pm:
I’m very happy for the employed Illinoisans and Central Illinois, I spent 3 great years there and miss it a lot. I follow auto industry very closely, and I’m not sure how well these will sell, especially the R1T for $80k when you can get an F-150 Lighting for $30k less.
- Been There - Monday, Sep 13, 21 @ 1:26 pm:
I have to admit I was really skeptical about this a few years ago. Along with others on this blog. But it has been a very pleasant surprise except unfortunately for the UAW problem. Which is a surprise since they are taking goverment subsidies in a Union state.
- Donnie Elgin - Monday, Sep 13, 21 @ 1:29 pm:
“But I am scared silly for my UAW brothers and sisters”
Building Trades are doing very well…
In interviews with local unions, few could point to anything of that scope in recent local history…“We’re swamped. We’re extremely busy,” said Matt Watchinski, business representative with Carpenters Local 237…Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 99 in Bloomington also is busy. It’s at full employment for the first time in a while. That includes about 75 union members right now at Rivian.
https://www.wglt.org/local-news/2021-05-21/for-rivian-buildout-union-workers-the-benefits-go-beyond-the-paycheck
- JS Mill - Monday, Sep 13, 21 @ 1:30 pm:
I wonder if Jesse Sullivan knows that they are bringing workers IN to Illinois for the Rivian plant?
- Blue Dog - Monday, Sep 13, 21 @ 1:32 pm:
I am looking forward to test driving the Ford EV truck. I think it may be available in early 2022.
- Ducky LaMoore - Monday, Sep 13, 21 @ 1:36 pm:
“for $30k less”
The starting price on the new Lightnings will be 42k. You are thinking of the compact pickup they will be making. 30k is the starting price for all electric on that one.
To the post… this is so cool. If I lived closer to Normal, I would be trying to get a job at Rivian.
- Honeybear - Monday, Sep 13, 21 @ 1:43 pm:
I’ll believe it when they produce a single vehicle besides the one that took Bezos to the launch pad.
In all the years they have been a car company they’ve only produced one vehicle that I can see.
They are masters at PR
Not at car building.
- Publius - Monday, Sep 13, 21 @ 1:44 pm:
Guess this goes aganist the ILGOP playbook to talk about this. It is really good for the area. Now let’s see what we can do for other areas. Despite what the ILGOP says government regulations, taxes, and so on have no impact on big projects like this. Unlike in Texas we can keep the lights on and unlike Florida you don’t have to worry too much about a flood/hurricane washing everything away. The state/governor should talk all these things up.
- Annonin' - Monday, Sep 13, 21 @ 3:51 pm:
Great progress is going on there And this is most concrete of how much mope GovJunk was. He never took the time to learn what was actually going on in IL. Bernie whacked a number of times. He never learned.
- MyTwoCents - Monday, Sep 13, 21 @ 4:46 pm:
Honeybear, $1.5 billion is a lot to spend on PR. This is good news for BN and hopefully it’ll continue to grow.
- DuPage - Monday, Sep 13, 21 @ 5:33 pm:
The construction jobs will drop off after completion of the plant(s). Having a unionized workforce to actually build the vehicles would be good long term. That is if Rivian survives, they are going to have tough competition.
- Padraig - Monday, Sep 13, 21 @ 9:19 pm:
Honeybear
“I’ll believe it when they produce a single vehicle”
Get ready to start believing. Word on the street in Normal is that they will start rolling off the line in the next week or so. Ford, T Rowe Price, and Amazon didn’t invest billions because of PR.