PROC facility to be emptied

Today, Chrysler announced that it had transferred about 450 employees from the Plymouth Road Office Complex to Auburn Hills. The remaining Jeep/Truck designers at the facility will move in the summer. 

In November 2008, Allpar ran a story that prematurely stated the facility was to close (and ran a correction shortly afterwards.)

The picturesque complex in an unsavory section of Detroit has multiple buildings, with 1.5 million square feet of space on 50 acres; that includes 370,000 square feet of R&D space, 500,000 square feet of engineering/computer room space, warehousing, and administrative/office space. The complex also has a health activity center, auditorium, and cafeteria. 

Development of various Jeeps (excluding the Patriot/Compass) and the Dodge Ram and Durango was centered at PROC. In 2007, over 1,600 people worked in the complex (down from 1,900 in 2005). It was put up for sale in 2007 with an asking price of $10 million.

PROC was built in 1926, to make Kelvinator refrigerators. In 1937, when Nash and Kelvinator merged, the combined company’s headquarters was in the main building. Hundreds of helicopters were made there during World War II. In 1954, when Hudson and Nash merged, PROC became AMC’s headquarters, until 1987, when AMC was purchased by Chrysler. At that point, PROC became the central engineering location for all corporate trucks and SUVs, a position it held until now.

Photos are courtesy of Carolyn Allmacher, who took them in October 2008.