US motorcycle and ATV manufacturer Polaris Industries is to build a new ATV production plant in Huntsville, Alabama. It should be up and running during the second quarter of 2016, and will employ a 1700-strong workforce when reaching full capacity later that year.
The deal to construct this 600,000 sq-ft facility on a 453-acre site has been sweetened with subsidies and tax breaks worth £53m by the State of Alabama authorities.
Alabama is one of the US “Right to Work” states, where trade union membership is voluntary, union closed shops are illegal and wages are therefore lower. Polaris competitor Harley-Davidson located its most modern factory in Missouri, a long way south of the brand’s headquarters in Wisconsin, for similar reasons.
Pictured is the new Polaris ATV factory in Poland, opened last year.