GM to make electric motors

GM plans to make electric motors.

General Motors in late January announced that it plans to manufacture electric motors for its future hybrid and electric vehicles.

The Detroit-based company plans to build a $246 million factory in Baltimore to manufacture the motors, which are slated to debut in its vehicles in 2013.

The decision to make its own electric motors was made in 2008, as the company realized it needed to master elements of electric vehicle technology, particularly electric motors, project engineering director Pete Savagian says.

But there’s still plenty of room for suppliers in GM’s plan. The company plans to pursue a make-and-buy strategy for its motors, and to seek out two types of suppliers: those that will make whole motors based on GM specifications, and those that will supply parts to GM for building the motors itself. In the second category, there’s need for all elements that make up an electric motor, including copper wire, magnets and steel, Savagian says.

“It’s essential we work with best suppliers,” as the supply chain contains the keys to cost, reliability and efficiency, he says.

GM, which filed for bankruptcy in mid-2009, received $105 million in recovery act funds to go towards the building of the new plant. GM hired Ed Whitacre to serve as its new CEO. The former AT&T (NYSE: T) CEO said GM intends to pay off its loans of more than $8 billion to both the U.S. and Canadian governments by June 2010.