Innovation & Job News

New contract enables Detroit Heavy Truck Engineering to double headcount

Thursday, March 17, 2011

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Detroit Heavy Truck Engineering is digging deep in its Novi office to accommodate a new contract to design and engineer heavy dump trucks for mining. That should create nearly 50 new jobs over the next five years.

The nearly 1-year-old company designs, engineers, sells and supports heavy trucks and mining equipment. It currently employs a dozen people and 22 subcontractors. This new deal should double its employee count within the next year and add a total of 49 jobs over the next five years.

"We're not going to be huge," says Donna Melonio, director of administrative services for Detroit Heavy Truck Engineering. "We will be extremely selective and very high-tech."

Detroit Heavy Truck Engineering will do the design and engineering work for the a 400 ton diesel-electric mining dump truck and for other 200-400 ton truck models and electric shovels with 30-70 cubic meter bucket capacity. The big dump trucks are destined for mining in Asia and were commissioned by a Chinese-controlled manufacturing company called Elite.

Making the deal possible is a $1.2 million tax credit over five years from the Michigan Economic Development Corp. The company also considered setting up operations in Wyoming.

Source: Donna Melonio, director of administrative services for Detroit Heavy Truck Engineering
Writer: Jon Zemke

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