Allison Opens Transmission Plant

INDIANAPOLIS -- Allison Transmission expects its new plant in Indianapolis to reach full production speed this fall, but it will not be enough to meet the growing demand for automatic truck transmissions.

With the dedication of the $200 million factory June 4, Allison started turning out its light-duty Series 1000 transmission. It is the first of three new transmissions, with the medium-duty 2000 and 2400 models joining the product schedule by October.

All of the new transmissions are electronically controlled five-speeds with overdrive. The 1000 series is targeted toward the fast-growing light- and light-medium commercial market, which includes vehicles of up to 20,000 pounds gross vehicle weight, such as pickups, walk-in vans and buses. The 2400 series is intended for vehicles up to 26,000 pounds, and the 2000 is for heavier vehicles of up to 30,000 pounds.

Allison officials said when the plant is going full tilt, its 400 or so workers will be making about 104,000 transmissions annually. However, even that figure will not meet the market demand. As the automatics become increasingly popular with drivers, especially of medium-duty trucks and school buses, a chronic shortage has developed. Automatic transmissions also may have a role to play in attracting new drivers to the long-haul freight market.

Allison officials said they have the lion's share of the automatic transmission market -- 80% worldwide. But they have been under the gun for several years because of the company's inability to produce enough medium-duty automatic transmissions to keep up with the surge in demand. That shortage forced Allison to put its customers on an allocation schedule, limiting the number of transmissions customers could receive and causing delays of up to six months in delivery of medium-duty trucks.

The Indianapolis plant will boost the company's total transmission output by about 60% when in full production. However, that will not be until the fall, and truck manufacturers have an immediate need to fill the shortage of automatic transmissions.

For example, Navistar International blamed the lack of such an essential component for plans to reduce production of its medium-duty truck and school bus chassis at a plant in Springfield, Ohio. On June 21, the company will impose a cutback, going from 324 to 288 units a day.

For the full story, see the June 14 print edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.