By Louie Graves
News-Leader staff
Wednesday, Nov. 8, will be a busy red-letter day for Husqvarna in Nashville.
Company officials will join locals that morning in a flip-the-switch event at the company’s solar power generating facility north of town near the company’s injection molding facility.
In the afternoon, a ground-breaking ceremony will officially launch construction of the company’s 350,000 sq. ft. warehouse facility, located on the campus of the original Poulan plant in south Nashville. The project is expected to be completed by the end of 2018, according to a company news release.
The solar project will increase the company’s use of renewable energy resources. The plant will reduce coal-based emissions by 2,100 tons during the first year of operation, and by approximately 52,000 tons over its expected 25-year life. The plant will generate about one-fourth of the annual electric power needed by the adjacent molding facility.
The warehouse facility will serve as warehouse, staging and storage. It will be located adjacent to the manufacturing facility where chainsaws, trimmers, blowers, pole saws and hedge trimmers are produced.
The warehouse will consolidate operations currently located in De Queen and in Shreveport, La.