American Axle

American Axle & Manufacturing, Inc. (commonly called American Axle or AAM) (nyse|AXL), headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, is a manufacturer of automobile driveline, drivetrain, electronic integrated power units and chassis systems, as well as metal formed products. It was formed in 1994 from five of General Motors (GM) plants and continues to serve that manufacturer with suspensions, differentials, and similar components. American Axle also supplies parts to other OEM manufacturers around the globe.

AAM was founded in 1994 when a private investor group, led by Richard E. "Dick" Dauch and James W. McLernon, purchased the Final Drive and Forge Business Unit from GM's Saginaw Division. Within the next 10 years, the campus was expanded, renovated, landscaped, among numerous other improvements, making the grounds much more attractive. Business was expanded, internally (with acquisitions) and externally (with new customers and suppliers). Plants are continually updated, bringing in new equipment and technology, as well as expanding the AAM product lines through intensive and innovative R&D. Since the acquisition, the facilities are more organized, with brighter lighting, and more efficient machines. In 1999, AAM went public, and is traded as "AXL" on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).

General Motors Corporation has remained AAM's largest customer, accounting for 76% of its sales in Q1:06, supplying the driveline components for essentially the entire range of vehicles based on the GMT 900 platform, which are rear wheel drive (RWD) and 4WD/AWD trucks and SUVs, including the GMC Yukon, Cadillac Escalade, and as many as 15 other corporate derivatives across other GM brands.

AAM's World Headquarters building, erected in 2004, is located on the Detroit/Hamtramck border. It changed the skyline of Detroit for commuters heading north or south on I-75 near the downtown area, adjacent to the I-75 service drive. The headquarters, approximately two blocks in width, adjoins the original Detroit Gear and Axle (DGA), consisting of eight machining, forging and assembly plants. Also located in Michigan is a Technical Center, located in Rochester Hills, Three Rivers Driveline, located in Three Rivers, and MSP Industries forging, headed up in Oxford. Located in New York are Buffalo Gear and Axle (BGA), Cheektowaga Machining and Tonawanda Forge. Colfor Manufacturing, Inc. is located in Ohio, and there are offices in Guanjuato Mexico (AAM de Mexico, S.A. de C.V.), Pune India, and Japan. AAM also runs other manufacturing operations in Arucario, Brazil (AAM do Brasil), the United Kingdom (Albion Automotive), and launched two other plants in 2006 in Olawa, Poland and Changshu, China. Bad Homburg, Germany houses the European Headquarters and an engineering center as well.

2008 Strike

On February 26, 2008, approximately 3600 American Axle employees went on strike to protest a proposed wage and benefit cut by the company's management. The proposal would reduce workers' hourly wage from $28 to $14 and would also cut benefits. [http://anti-union.blogspot.com/2008/03/american-axle-strike.html] , Joe's Union Review, accessed 23 April 2008.] The strike cost General Motors $2.6 billion as the automaker lost the production of its Chevrolet Malibu sedan and other vehicles. [http://thearticlewriter.com/autowriter/american-axle-costs-gm-2-billionouch] , The Auto Writer, accessed 19 June 2008.] [http://www.autotrends.org/gm-to-slash-expenses-raise-cash-to-move-forward/] , Auto Trends, accessed 18 July 2008.]

References

External links

* [http://www.aam.com American Axle homepage]