Caterpillar Tucson is a key technology hub for heavy-equipment giant Caterpillar Inc., which develops new systems and products at its mining-tech center downtown Tucson and tests them at its Tucson Proving Ground near Green Valley. The nearby Tinaja Hills Demonstration and Learning Center hosts an average 6,000 people annually for demonstrations and training, with a state-of-the-art education and conference complex and thousands of acres of desert for instruction and testing. A staff of about 30 manage the center, including demonstrator instructors who must have at least 10 years’ experience in heavy-equipment operations and are versed in a range of Caterpillar mining and construction equipment. Caterpillar does a lot of training to assist the mines that use Cat products to get the most from their investment. Cat instructors teach them how to be safe and efficient. Before the expansion, Caterpillar’s existing operations in the Tucson area (such as the Tucson Proving Ground and Tinaja Hills Demonstration Center) employed about 300 people . With the development of the new Tucson facilities and relocation of the Surface Mining and Technology division, Caterpillar plans will create more than 600 new jobs, bringing total company employment in Southern Arizona close to ~ 1,000 people once fully staffed.
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