Honda expanding at Logan County plant

RUSSELLS POINT, Ohio (AP) - Honda has announced a $50 million expansion at a transmissions plant in western Ohio where workers will cast additional aluminum transmission cases.

Honda Transmission Manufacturing of America Inc. said Wednesday that the 75,000-square-foot expansion at the plant in Russells Point will house high-pressure die-casting operations. A new melting furnace is expected to reduce waste and energy consumption.

Honda Transmission receives about 100,000 pounds of molten aluminum per day from mills in Indiana.

The addition is being added to support a new transmission assembly line that began construction in December and is part of a 200,000-square foot expansion. The automaker says the two projects are expected to create more than 100 jobs by 2013.

The plant currently employs about 1,000 people who manufacture transmissions and four-wheel-drive assemblies.