Honda Aero, Inc. broke ground Nov. 28 for its new corporate headquarters and jet engine plant in Burlington, North Carolina. The plant is adjacent to Burlington-Alamance County Regional Airport (BUY).
Honda plans to manufacture its GE-Honda HF120 turbofan engine there. The HF120 has been chosen to power Honda’s own HondaJet, as might have been expected, and Spectrum Aeronautical’s Freedom VLJ. The HondaJet plant is in nearby Greensboro, but its manufacturer – Honda Aircraft Co. – is a separate entity from Honda Aero, said Alicia Jones, a Honda Aero spokeswoman.
The 102,400-square foot Honda Aero facility will include 36,000 square feet of office space, a 58,400-square foot production plant and an 8,000-square foot engine test cell, Jones said. The company expects to employ about 70 people once initial annual capacity of 200 engines is reached, expected to be within a year of production startup, she added.
Honda Aero is investing some $27 million for construction of the facility, including equipment, according to Jones.
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