V-Vehicle Moves Forward With Construction

Last summer V-Vehicle announced it would build its first line of fuel efficient cars right here in Monroe.

And already the car company is fixing up the existing facility and doubling the size of the plant getting ready to build its new vehicle starting next year.

The sound of bulldozers and heavy equipment can be heard all around the V-Vehicle plant.

Tuesday V-Vehicle announced it will need some help building the car.

V-Vehicle will make internships to Louisiana Tech engineering students.

"Those students are working on a lot of the same problems we are, which is to design energy efficient vehicles and that's one of the things that excited us about the program," said V-Vehicle site Director David Hitchcock.

And before the plant can even be close to making a V-car there's still a lot of tearing down and building back up of the existing 400 thousand square foot building.

"It's kind of demolition of stuff we can't use, they're some mezzanines, they're some internal structures and some fire walls that would just be in the way."

David Hitchcock is overseeing the assembly process for V-Vehicle in Monroe.

He says crews have tearing out the old for the last few weeks.

And as for all the old concrete, V-Vehicle already has a plan to re-use it for its expansion.

"We'll crush it into kind of gravel sized and they'll use it for construction road beds, where they'll lay gravel so that the trucks won't get stuck and also use it in the foundation of the new building," said Hitchcock.

That new building Hitchcock is talking about is what will add 400 square feet to the building, doubling the size of V-Vehicle's plant.

"That west wall will come down and it will be one enormous building at that point," said Hitchcock.

Beard construction started a million dollar project Tuesday, moving Bennett Bayou so the company can fully expand on the property.

"They're renting equipment, buying fuel for these machines, all kinds of things that are positive impacts so the good news is the economic impact no matter what happens is something to fall right here in Ouachita parish," said Hitchcock.

Hitchcock says construction is right on time and they are still on track to move in the manufacturing machines by summer 2010.