Posted: 12 Mar 2010 04:31 AM PST

SHIRLEY -- Great Road Automotive is now open on 33 Great Road in Shirley.

Owner of the site, Robert Dee, purchased the large building in February 2009 at auction and moved in this past May. The building that once housed a roofing business and before that an RV dealership, is now occupied by Dee Bus Service and Great Road Automotive.

After purchasing the site, Dee's plan was to find someone "honest and reliable," to manage an auto repair business there. He approached Robert Mula who he knew has 23 years of experience working for Hudson Road Automotive in Stow.

For his part, Mula saw Dee's offer as a great opportunity to grow professionally and work closer to home. Mula lives in Townsend with his wife, Marcy, and children, Adam and Amanda.

Mula decided to take the position as manager and said he looks forward to growing the business and giving great personal service.

Great Road Automotive services foreign and domestic cars and light trucks. It's located at 33 Great Road on Route 2A with easy

access to surrounding communities. Vehicle inspections are offered daily from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., with no appointment necessary. Regular business hours are Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

"We offer competitive pricing and local transportation will be provided for customers who are receiving a full service," said Mula.

The garage is equipped with new equipment and all the latest technology and is ready for business.

When asked what he specializes in, Mula smiled and said he "does it all."

Robert Dee and Bob Mula look forward to hiring more mechanics as the business grows.

For more information on Great Road Automotive, call Bob Mula at 978-425-4904.

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Green car concepts - MSNBC

Posted: 10 Mar 2010 03:54 PM PST

The so-called "RV Capital of the World" may soon be able to bill itself the "EV Capital of the World." What a difference a letter makes.

Elkhart, Ind., about 155 miles southwest of Detroit, will soon be the new U.S. production center for Think, the Norwegian-based manufacturer that hopes to charge into the emerging market for battery-electric vehicles. The first of the maker's two-seat City, an urban commuter car, will begin rolling off the new assembly line a year from now. If demand meets Think's expectation, the company hopes to be turning out as many as 20,000 battery-electric vehicles, or BEVs, annually by 2013.

The announcement, earlier this year, that Think would settle in Indiana puts the spotlight on the Midwestern state's broader effort to position itself as a leader in a technology that many believe to be the future of the auto industry. Indeed, Gov. Mitch Daniels has declared it one of his goals to turn Indiana into "the electric vehicle state."

Indiana isn't the only state chasing that goal.

"I don't know a state that isn't aggressively trying to get this business," including both California and Michigan, the latter of which is still considered the home of the U.S. auto industry, said David Cole, director of the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, Mich.

"Indiana does have some advantages" though, added Cole.

That includes cash the state is willing to spend to get a business such as Think. After emerging from bankruptcy protection last year, the one-time Ford Motor Co. subsidiary decided it needed to build its BEVs in the U.S., rather than importing them from Europe, which would make the cars costly due to an unfavorable exchange rate. Think looked at a number of possible manufacturing sites but a key draw for Indiana was what chief executive Richard Canny cautiously described as a "competitive" incentive package — reportedly about $43 million in government assistance.

Canny was quick to add, however, "You don't choose a location just based on incentives."

Setting up shop in northern Indiana gives Think access to an enormous pool of trained labor, including many workers familiar with automotive manufacturing. The region has long been home to the nation's recreational vehicle industry. But the virtual collapse of the RV market has left it with one of the nation's highest unemployment rates and given Think a chance to pick and choose employees.

"If you were to start an electric car company, I would tell you it's a good place to start," said Jerry Medlin, chief executive of LC3, a small producer of so-called neighborhood electric vehicles, modified golf carts based in Fort Wayne, Ind.

Indeed, a number of start-ups are heeding that advice, including Bright Automotive in Anderson, Ind., which, among other things, has a contract to provide electric vehicles to the U.S. Postal Service.

Yet another advantage to Indiana is its central position in the traditional automotive supplier corridor. Though foreign-based automakers, like Nissan, Hyundai and Toyota, have largely set up bases in the South, the Midwest is still the nexus of American automotive manufacturing. What Indiana doesn't make often can be found nearby in Ohio or Michigan.

And what the Hoosier State does produce includes many of the key components specifically needed for electric vehicles: motors, power controllers and batteries.

It's often forgotten that Indiana was a power in the early days of the auto industry, home to a diverse collection of manufacturers such as Packard, Stutz and Studebaker, pointed out Paul Mitchell, president of Energy Systems Network, which promotes the development of alternative energy businesses in Indiana.

While those classic nameplates have long been abandoned, Mitchell noted that the state's role in the auto industry has remained significant. It was a pioneer in the development of electric propulsion. The GM EV1, a widely heralded experiment General Motors tried to market in the 1990s, was developed at a skunk works the company set up on the north side of Indianapolis.

Many of EV1's key components, including its motors and electronic technologies, were produced in the state by what were then several GM subsidiaries, such as Delco-Remy.

In recent years, GM has spun off a number of those operations, but they haven't necessarily gone away. Delphi's Indiana operations produce key electrical and electronic systems, Allison Transmission is a major supplier of transmissions and other components for hybrid and electric vehicles, and Remy turns out electric motors and hybrid transmission components.

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Today's corporate news direct from Michigan businesses - MLive.com

Posted: 05 Mar 2010 03:53 PM PST

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Iowa Firefighters Battle Lumberyard Warehouse Fire - digtriad.com

Posted: 09 Mar 2010 11:16 AM PST

Mason City, IA -- A lumberyard warehouse in northern Iowa has gone up in flames. Fire broke out at the warehouse around six-30 Monday night.

Firefighters found themselves in a defensive mode from the start as they tried to get the flames under control.

The building owner John Boland said he left his building just about an hour before and everything was fine.

Boland said he had about seven classic cars and trucks and an RV inside the warehouse, as well as automotive paint.

No one was inside the building at the time of the fire and no firefighters were hurt.