Abandoned GM Stamping Plant Site

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Nov 4, 2012
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Work had me doing parts deliveries today, our usual delivery guy called off sick so I got called up to make the rounds. I had to drop off and pick up parts at a couple dealers in West Mifflin, which is not an area I frequent but I ended up driving right past where the GM Stamping Plant used to be so I decided to pull over and check it out for a minute. It's pretty sad to look at, the only thing that is left is the back wall that wasn't demolished and the frame of the plant sign. I believe it closed back in '07 or '08. At one point it employed over 2,000 people. I don't actually know what cars had parts made there. If anyone does I'd love to know. Possibly any G Body parts? Anyways I thought it was an interesting stop nonetheless.

What's left of the plant sign-
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What it used to look like-
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The empty lot, only the back wall remains-
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The USS Irvin Plant directly across the road-
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lilbowtie

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Jan 7, 2006
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GM still plans to close West Mifflin plant
pittsburghpostgazette.png


DON HAMMONDS
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette


SEP 8, 2006

12:00 AM

Despite the local union's hope for a reprieve, General Motors officials reiterated yesterday that they will close the West Mifflin stamping plant, although they have not yet settled upon an exact date for doing so.
"We still plan to cease operations there sometime in 2007," said Troy Clark, GM Group vice president and president of GM North America. He and Mark LaNeve, GM North America president of vehicle sales, service and marketing, were in Pittsburgh for a series of meetings with dealers and the Post-Gazette.
The announcement that the 55-year-old factory would be closed came late last year as part of GM's broad restructuring program to cut 30,000 jobs at 12 facilities across the country in an effort to revive the struggling automaker. Mr. Clark said the cost-reduction program is exceeding its goals.
The number of hourly workers at the West Mifflin plant has slipped below 500 as 229 workers accepted GM's special attrition program aimed at reducing the size of the automaker's work force. The company had announced in March that it would offer buyouts or early retirement incentives as high as $140,000 to all 113,000 of its hourly employees.
Some of the plant's workers had hoped GM would change its mind and keep the facility opened, particularly after two presses for manufacturing parts had been shifted from GM's Lansing, Mich., plant to West Mifflin. Representatives of United Auto Workers Local 544 bargaining unit could not be reached for comment.
Mr. Clark promised that GM would "work very closely with the community" in trying to find other uses for the land and take steps to ease the negative impact of the closing on the community.
 

pagrunt

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Sep 14, 2014
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I remember that plant. Think it was kinda a general parts plant that was stamping for several plants but mainly for Lordstown. Didn't GM also have a plant that did plastic parts in the area too?
 
Nov 4, 2012
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I remember that plant. Think it was kinda a general parts plant that was stamping for several plants but mainly for Lordstown. Didn't GM also have a plant that did plastic parts in the area too?

That would make sense, As GM plants go, I think it was pretty small. The most I remember of it is it being in the news when it closed. They may have had a plastics plant around there as well, I don't know. This was the first time I've ever driven past it, again I'm hardly ever in that West Mifflin/Mon Valley part of town.
 

billyjack

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Mar 27, 2009
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Late to the party, but I'm quite familiar with that plant from my years working at the Buick-GMC Dealer in Pleasant Hills. In later years (90's) they were specialized in sheet metal stamping for GM Parts of all divisions. They had hundreds of dies, some weighing tons, stacked to the right of the building. They developed processes to change dies in a press in 15-20 minutes, which made them cost-effective to do short runs of parts. I witnessed a die swap one day and every move was orchestrated like a NASCAR pit stop, just obviously not as fast. When the plant was closing, most of the dies were bought by a non-GM company in West Virginia, which may be one of the reasons why the quality of aftermarket parts got better over the years. Using an OEM die gets a much better finished product than reverse-engineering one from a good fender.

I used to work for GM Corporate in the 70's at the Hydra-Matic plant in Ypsilanti, Michigan. A few years ago, I found some current pics of the plant in its abandoned state when GM had commissioned a company to help sell off some of their properties. When I worked there we had 5800 employees, making Turbo 400 and 425 transmissions, as well as M16 rifles. It was sad to see all the emptiness and garbage everywhere when your last memories were of a bustling workplace.

Bill
 
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Kennybill

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Mar 17, 2010
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I live about 4 miles from the GM Lordstown plant. The last Cruises they made were all white cars. All have been shipped out. A few workers are stamping out spare parts for future needs. It's like a ghost town.
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Nov 4, 2012
5,998
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113
I live about 4 miles from the GM Lordstown plant. The last Cruises they made were all white cars. All have been shipped out. A few workers are stamping out spare parts for future needs. It's like a ghost town. View attachment 110609 View attachment 110614

I've driven past that plant dozens of times, I never got to see it up close though. It's a shame, the Lordstown closure really pissed me off.

The Cruze was a good car too, my uncle has one that I drove from here in Pittsburgh to Maine and back last summer and I really liked it. GM finally got the car right (cough, cough Cavalier, Cobalt) and decides to close the plant and stop making it.
 
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