STEZZANO, Italy – Brembo Group announces plans to broaden its industrial capacity in Michigan and vertically integrate its production processes. Once construction is completed, the approximately 30,000 square meter facility will have an annual output of up to 80,000 tons.

Brembo has announced the construction of a cast iron foundry near its Homer facilities in Michigan, beginning the process of vertical integration of its production capacity in United States. Construction will begin in 2015 and is expected to be complete in 2017, allowing Brembo to bring together all phases of production in order to guarantee greater process efficiency.

Thanks to a €74 million (approximately $100 million) investment, Brembo will operate a modern foundry facility that, once it reaches full production capacity, will yield up to an annual output of 80,000 tons of brake disc castings. The foundry together with engineering and technical offices and warehouse space will cover an area of approximately 30,000 square meters and will create 250 jobs at the foundry and at the company’s Plymouth R&D center and headquarters.

Brembo says investment in the new foundry reinforces the company’s commitment to the North American market, which has grown substantially over the past five years. North America is expected to become Brembo’s No. 1 geographic market by the end of 2014.

“Following the opening of our Plymouth headquarters and R&D center in 2010 and two months away from the completion of the recent Homer plant expansion, we are glad to announce this significant investment approved today, which will reinforce the link between Brembo and the United States, one of the most important automotive markets in the world,” said Brembo S.p.A Chairman Alberto Bombassei. “The increasing number of global platforms being built by vehicle manufacturers prompts us to seek the best possible integration between the different stages of the value chain, replicating the integrated production model that we have adopted for some time now in our facilities in Italy, and recently in Poland and China.”

This new investment will be financed with cash flow generated by the Group and will be supported by incentives made possible by the State of Michigan and the Michigan Economic Development Corporation. Brembo began its expansion in North America in 1988, but its recent growth was spurred by the purchase of the Hayes-Lemmerz Automotive Brake Component division in 2007, when it acquired the manufacturing facility in Homer, Mich., as well as one in Apodaca, Mexico.

In 2010, Brembo opened its American headquarters and R & D Centre in Plymouth, Mich., and expanded the Homer plant earlier this year. Brembo also has a facility in Mooresville, N.C., near the headquarters of several major racing teams. Brembo’s high-performance brake systems have supported F1, IndyCar, NASCAR, Le Mans and MotoGP, among others.