SOUTHFIELD, Mich.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--        Lear Corporation (NYSE: LEA), a leading global supplier of automotive        seating and electrical systems, today broke ground on a new seat        manufacturing facility located on the former site of the historic Buick        City complex in Flint, Mich.          This press release features multimedia. View the full release here:  http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20171002006087/en/                  Ray Scott, executive vice president of Lear Corporation and president of        Lear's seating business, was joined by Flint Mayor Karen Weaver and Tom        McMillen, executive director, Interiors & Safety, Global Purchasing &        Supply Chain at General Motors.                    Jason Scott, global vice president for Lear's GM seating group,        presented an informational overview including specific plans for the        Flint plant, and Gerald Kariem, Director of UAW Region 1D, provided        additional remarks.                    Lear's Flint seating plant will be the first major automotive supplier        manufacturing facility constructed in Flint in more than 30 years. Plans        call for the 156,000-sq.ft. facility to begin production of seats by        April 2018. The world-class facility will employ approximately 600        workers, when it reaches full production. Thirty percent of the 33-plus        acre site will be green space.                    Lear chose the Buick City site for a number of reasons including: its        proximity to the homes of many of its workers, the location of the GM        plant, as well as the corporation's objective to give back to the        communities in which it operates. The Flint area has been hard hit in        recent years, and Lear also wants to bring manufacturing back to the        area since many manufacturing jobs in Flint have been lost over the past        several decades.                    Flint holds sentimental value for Ray Scott, who grew up in Flint        and worked while attending the University of Michigan-Flint delivering        parts just-in-time to General Motors.                    "I have a lot of pride in Flint; it helped shape who I am today," he        said. "We had options for other locations that we considered, but what        was important to us was that this was the right thing to do from a        community standpoint. To build a modern, state of the art facility at        that location is very symbolic and historic."                    Lear worked with GM and the City of Flint while deciding on the location        for the new manufacturing facility. The Michigan Strategic Fund board        approved a $4.35-million Michigan Business Development Program        performance-based grant to support Lear's $29.3-million capital        investment at the site, which includes the subassembly and final        assembly of automotive seats.                    "We have a long relationship with Lear during its 100 years of        business," said Mr. McMillen. "Lear has earned GM's coveted Supplier of        the Year designation 16 times and our partnership continues as we both        commit to this next phase for Flint. Our next-generation vehicles to be        produced in Flint are our newest step in almost $3 billion we have        invested in Flint since 2009."                    "We are proud to partner with Lear on this exciting new project," said        Mayor Weaver. "We are pleased to have established a good relationship        with a company that has demonstrated it supports the communities where        it does business. This project will provide opportunities for Flint        residents and an overall positive impact on our local economy. Both Lear        and the City of Flint are looking positively to the future."

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20171002006087/en/                    LearMel Stephens248.447.1624            Source: Lear Corporation          News Provided by Acquire Media