Mack Truck Factory

For all of the years that I have attended the ATCA truck show in Macungie I’ve never taken advantage of the tours of the Mack Customer Center or the factory tour that happens to be just down the street from the show grounds. I always thought about going but it’s hard to draw me away from hundreds of classics trucks assembled in one place. Shortly after arriving to the show this year I decided to finally take the ATCA up on their offer and check out the factory during the one day of the year the plant is open to the public.

During the bus ride over a few facts and figures were tossed out by the volunteer Mack Ambasador.

• One of the largest truck factories in the world with over 1 million square feet of space
• The only Mack factory in the United States
• All Mack models are produced in the factory
• Over 1,400 UAW employees
• Daily truck production of 74 units per day
• Not a single robot is used to build the trucks. Complete hand assembly.

I can confirm the validity of the last statement. When the machines rise up the Macungie plant will be one of the places on earth in which humanity can take shelter and build the weapons that will save us! The next summer blockbuster maybe?

The self guided walking tour provided access to just a small portion of the assembly area. The cab assembly line, paint section, and power train installation subsections were all open to inspection. A thin yellow rope separated me from the nuts, bolts, and other various pieces used to make Mack trucks of all types.

I was very impressed with the feel of the plant. It was bright and well kept. There were no obnoxious odors or sounds that you would typically associate with the production of heavy duty vehicles. It was difficult to capture the scale of the operation but if you stare down this row of open doors you’ll get a feel of how it is.

All in all it was a very cool experience to step foot in one of the world’s premiere truck factories and see how a pile of parts become a function machine. A large thank you to the ATCA and Mack employees who volunteered their time on a beautiful Saturday afternoon. Below, one of the finished products on display.

And more.

The video experience.