In response to the tariffs introduced by Donald Trump, JCB have announced that they will double the size of their new Texas manufacturing plant to one million square feet
After the Trump administration announced a raft of tariffs designed to prioritise American manufacturing within the domestic market, JCB have revised plans for their new factory in San Antonio.
JCB bought 400 acres of land last year with initial plans for a 500m square foot facility, which has now been revised to one million square feet. The factory will cater specifically for the North American market.
JCB had already been targeting American expansion
Speaking when the land was acquired last year, JCB chairman Lord Bamford said: “Construction equipment manufacturers sell more than 300,000 machines every year in North America, making it the single largest market in the world. JCB has been growing its share of this important market steadily over the past few years and the time is now right to invest in our manufacturing capacity in North America, where we already have one factory.”
The factory will be the business’ second in the states, joining a plant in Savannah, Georgia, which was established in 2001 and employs around a thousand people.
It is estimated the San Antonio plant will employ around 1,500 and is due to begin construction next year, now valued at $500m(£385.3m).
An expanded US base is a strategic step in light of the tariffs, say JCB leads
JCB CEO Graeme Macdonald said: “In the short term, the imposition of tariffs will have a significant impact on our business. However, in the medium term, our planned factory in San Antonio will help to mitigate the impact. We are thankful that the tariff is only 10% and we can only hope that the UK Government will conclude negotiations on a trade deal in the coming days and weeks.”
Lord Bamford went on to say: “JCB has been in business for 80 years this year and we are well accustomed to change. The United States is the largest market for construction equipment in the world and President Trump has galvanised us into evaluating how we can make even more products in the USA, which has been an important market for JCB since we sold our first machine there in 1964.”
JCB employs 19,000 people globally and has 22 factories around the world, including 11 in the UK, seven in India, and others in Brazil and China. The company will mark its 80th anniversary in 2025.
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