A plain-looking warehouse near Detroit is being transformed into a state-of-the-art lithium-ion battery assembly plant. General Motors Co. (GM) is investing $43 million in the facility to mass-produce battery packs for the Chevrolet Volt and other extended-range electric vehicles. When the 160,000-square-foot facility opens next year, it will be the first lithium-ion battery manufacturing plant in the U.S. operated by a major automaker.

A timeline of key engineering and manufacturing milestones from GM's first century.

Last year, more than 50 percent of the vehicles that General Motors assembled were sold outside North America. The company's operations in China are among the most profitable in the company's vast production portfolio, which includes assembly plants on six continents.

GM has always loved to put on a good show.

Engineers at General Motors Corp. (Detroit) have developed innovative technology that is enabling the automaker to reduce changeover costs, improve quality and respond quickly to customers' changing needs. "We

The new Lansing Grand River plant blends state-of-the-art technology with 100-year-old tradition.