Mack Trucks Inc has begun construction on a new 36,870- square-foot addition to its Engineering Development & Test Center (EDTC)on Lehigh Parkway South in Allentown PA.
The EDTC, which has been the center of all vehicle development and testing activities for Mack since it opened in 1975, has about 345 Mack engineering and purchasing personnel. When the $5-million addition is completed, about 512 people will be located in the expanded 158,870-sq-ft facility. The additional personnel will move to the EDTC from a leased annex building, and from Mack headquarters.
This expansion is being driven mainly by the desire to "co-locate" members of the 3P group. The term 3P stands for "Product Programs, Product Development, and Purchasing," which until 1999 were independent departments, both at Mack and at its parent company, Renault VI.
The new two-story addition will consist primarily of office space, in addition to a new cafeteria and lobby. This compound also will contain styling and modeling studios, a fabrication area, a component and vehicle testing area, an environmental chamber that subjects vehicles to temperatures ranging from -20§ to 105§ F, a service area large enough to fit 20 trucks; a three-quarter-mile test track, and two off-road durability courses.