Construction and paving work resumed this month at the General Motors Canada McLaughlin Advanced Technology Track in Oshawa.
The works are expected to be completed later this year. An official grand opening is planned for the spring of 2021, said a city statement.
The multi-million-dollar investment was announced in May 2019 when GM released plans to invest $170 million in its Canadian operations. The testing facility and track are the first in Canada’s automotive industry specifically purposed for the testing of advanced General Motors vehicle software and technologies that will enable a future vision that is self-driven, all-electric, and highly connected, said the statement.
The 55-acre operation on the south end of the Oshawa plant will expand GM’s Canadian technology footprint to four sites and more than 900 staff. The new track will include two straight sections that are 1,200 feet long and joined by a banked curve on each end to allow for continuous safe driving at high speeds.
The GM Canadian Technology Centre (CTC) is one of Canada’s largest automotive software development clusters and GM’s largest advanced technology centre outside of the United States. Currently, work at the CTC requires more than 4,000 annual hours of in-car testing on a GM-controlled vehicle development surface, a demand that is expected to expand as operations grow to support 1,000 engineers. The new track will reduce costs and alleviate the current need to book GM facilities outside of Canada for required development testing.
Advanced vehicle systems
Upon completion, the track will support developing software and hardware for advanced vehicle systems including vehicle motion embedded control, advanced driver assistance systems, autonomous vehicle systems, infotainment, and advanced technology work to help GM fulfil its vision for a future with zero crashes, zero emissions and zero congestion.
“While the Covid-19 situation slowed progress, we are back on track and we look forward to officially opening this new jewel in the Canada Technology Centre crown early next year,” said Scott Bell, president and managing director, GM Canada. “Technology testing is a critical part of high value-added research and development work in our business, and Canada is proving to be an ideal place for GM to expand its engineering work for the future.”
“The City of Oshawa is excited to see that construction is in full force on the McLaughlin Advanced Technology Track. Once complete, it will bring new opportunities to our city and continue to propel Oshawa as a key location for the testing and development of advanced vehicle software and technologies including autonomous vehicle and advanced driver systems,” said Mayor Carter.