GE Appliances is going all in with a $490 million bet. They’ve announced that they will move production of clothes washers from China to their LEED-certified manufacturing complex in Louisville, Kentucky – home of the original Whirlpool. That strategic decision will bring an estimated 800 new jobs. It will specifically increase production at their Appliance Park facility, which is currently home to nearly 8,000 workers.
The investment is in line with GE Appliances’ successful growth strategy to double down on its commitment to American manufacturing. Over the past decade, the company has invested a total of $3.5 billion into its U.S. operations, signaling a focused shift toward domestic production. Appliance Park will add new manufacturing lines starting in 2027. This expansion will greatly enhance its capacity of producing washers, dryers, dishwashers, refrigerators and key parts and components.
Appliance Park, the flagship manufacturing site for GE Appliances, contains five plants that produce refrigerators, dishwashers, ovens and other appliances. With this latest infusion of cash, the facility looks to maximize its potential. It will be the biggest U.S. The decision to bring laundry production back to Louisville aligns with GE Appliances’ core business strategy of localizing manufacturing operations closer to its customer base.
Kevin Nolan, CEO of GE Appliances, noted the importance of this transition in a recent press release.
“We are bringing laundry production to our global headquarters in Louisville because manufacturing in the U.S. is fundamental to our ‘zero-distance’ business strategy to make appliances as close as possible to our customers and consumers.” – Kevin Nolan
Together, this investment generates and supports tens of thousands of jobs while strengthening American advanced manufacturing capacity. It allows GE Appliances to promote more integrated teamwork among its designers, engineers and manufacturing teams. As Lee Lagomarcino, a senior leader at GE Appliances, pointed out, being close to this talent is a huge advantage.
“Manufacturing in Louisville puts production closer to our designers, engineers and consumers so that together we can create our most innovative laundry platforms.” – Lee Lagomarcino
That the ruling also won praise from high-level state officials is further testament to its groundbreaking nature. Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear said the project’s impact on U.S. manufacturing could not be overstated.
“Today’s announcement brings more appliance manufacturing back to the United States and solidifies Kentucky and Louisville as the global headquarters of GE Appliances.” – Andy Beshear
GE Appliances has contracts with other manufacturers around the world, including China, for some of its production requirements. The recent billion-dollar investment of plant and equipment here does signal a pretty strong intent to make U.S.-based manufacturing an important piece of company’s long-term plans. GE Appliances has done a remarkable job streamlining operations at Appliance Park. The one thing that ensures their survival is increasing market share, innovating, and responding better than competition to consumer demands.
