GE Appliances’ $3B U.S. manufacturing investment will boost Georgia factory
A familiar home appliance maker on Wednesday pledged to invest $3 billion over five years in its U.S. operations and workforce, a plan that will include an expansion of production in Georgia.
Louisville, Kentucky-based GE Appliances says the expansion will create 1,000 jobs across five states, many in the Sun Belt. The more-than-a-century-old company is known for household staples such as washing machines, stoves and water heaters.
At its LaFayette facility in northwest Georgia, GE Appliances says its subsidiary, Roper Corp., will ramp up production of gas ranges previously made in Mexico. GE Appliances, formerly part of General Electric, was acquired by Haier, a Chinese multinational corporation, in 2016.
The announcement comes as President Donald Trump has imposed new tariffs across the globe with the goal of boosting domestic production.
“American manufacturing — it’s back,” Kevin Nolan, GE Appliances president and CEO, said during a livestreamed event Wednesday morning, alongside Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear.
“It’s essential for our economy, and it’s essential for American manufacturing, providing the goods that people need and the livelihood that they deserve,” Nolan said.
Manufacturing employment nationally has sputtered during the early months of Trump’s second term amid economic uncertainty over tariffs. The manufacturing sector lost 11,000 net jobs from June to July, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
GE Appliances’ announcement follows several other companies that have promised large U.S. investments during Trump’s second term, such as Apple and Hyundai Motor Group. Hyundai operates a sprawling EV plant near Savannah and its corporate cousin, Kia, operates a factory in West Point.
The White House released a lengthy list of the companies in June, touting “trillions of dollars of investments” in U.S. manufacturing and production.
But many of those commitments could take years to fulfill.
GE Appliances’ Roper Corp. is a large employer in northwest Georgia. Its LaFayette plant, about 100 miles northwest of downtown Atlanta, opened in 1973. It has 15 production lines that manufacture cooktops, wall ovens and ranges under the GE, GE Profile, Monogram and Café brands, the company said earlier this year.
The LaFayette plant in June completed a $180 million expansion, adding 600 jobs and expanding its capacity to produce gas, electric or induction ranges. The investment also tripled the facility’s use of robotics, according to an announcement.
The Georgia plant is now ready to add “hundreds of thousands of units,” said GE Appliances spokesperson Julie Wood. Wednesday’s announcement does not bring additional investment or new jobs to the LaFayette facility at this time, she said.
“We’re expanding what that plant can produce,” Nolan said at the event. “What was once a site only for electric ranges is now making gas ranges, induction cooktops and wall ovens. … Products that were made in Mexico are now made in Georgia.”
GE Appliances is also planning plant expansions and new products in Camden, South Carolina; Selmer, Tennessee; Decatur, Alabama; and at its largest U.S. manufacturing site and headquarters in Louisville, Kentucky.
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