LG Electronics has achieved a cumulative production milestone of 10 million laundry appliances at its manufacturing plant in Tennessee, USA.

By establishing a local production system in the United States, the company has significantly shortened product delivery times while expanding manufacturing automation powered by artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics. On the 15th, LG Electronics announced that it held a ceremony on the 13th (local time) at its Tennessee production subsidiary to celebrate reaching 10 million units in cumulative laundry appliance production.

Since starting washing machine production at the Tennessee plant in November 2018, LG has expanded its product lineup to include dryers and all-in-one washer-dryer combos like the WashTower. Over the years, the company has invested approximately $500 million (about 670 billion KRW) in expanding factory facilities and driving manufacturing innovation. Currently, the annual production capacity of the Tennessee plant reaches a total of 2.25 million units, consisting of 1.55 million washing machines and 700,000 dryers.

One of the most notable benefits of local production is the dramatic reduction in delivery times. While it previously took over 10 weeks to supply products manufactured overseas to U.S. retail stores, products produced at the Tennessee plant can now be delivered in about a week, according to LG Electronics.

LG's market share in the United States has also grown. According to market research firm Traqline, LG’s revenue-based market share for washing machines in the U.S. rose from 17.2% in 2018 to 23.3% last year. Over the same period, its dryer market share increased from 17.4% to 24.1%. Both product categories secured the number-one spot in revenue-based market share within the U.S. market last year.

The Tennessee plant has also gained attention as a smart manufacturing facility utilizing AI, digital twins, and industrial robots. By deploying approximately 300 industrial robots, the plant has raised its process automation rate to about 70%. Recognizing these manufacturing innovation achievements, the plant was named a "Lighthouse Factory" by the World Economic Forum (WEF) in 2023.

Recently, the plant has deployed its proprietary "LG CLOiD" robots onto the production line to test and validate tasks such as transporting and loading washing machine parts. Through this, LG plans to advance "physical AI" technology, where robots perform actual work in manufacturing environments.

"Driven by the consistent recognition of our laundry appliances by North American customers, our Tennessee plant has achieved this milestone of 10 million units in cumulative production," said Baek Seung-tae, Executive Vice President and Head of LG Electronics’ HS Business Division. "We will further solidify our leadership in the North American market through differentiated products and AI-driven manufacturing innovation."

[ⓒ Global Economic Times. 무단전재-재배포 금지]