Daimler’s wholly-owned commercial vehicle subsidiary, Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA), is starting construction of the new headquarters building on Swan Island in Portland, Ore. The new building will aid in merging DTNA employees located in separate offices in the Portland region. To this end, Daimler is investing $150 million to completion in the year 2016.

Martin Daum, President and CEO of Daimler Trucks North America, at the ground-breaking ceremony: “With our roots firmly planted in Portland over 70 years ago, Daimler Trucks North America is proud to lay the foundation for continued prosperity with a headquarters campus designed for the company’s long-term business success and a world-class workplace for employees.”

The Freightliner Corporation began manufacturing trucks in Portland in the 1940s. In 1981, the then Daimler-Benz AG (today Daimler AG) purchased Freightliner Trucks from Consolidated Freightways. In the next decade vehicle sales more than doubled. With its technological resources and innovation power, Daimler-Benz helped Freightliner reach the top of the North American heavy-duty truck market by 1992.

Today, Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA) is the leading manufacturer of medium- and heavy-duty trucks in North America, according to the automaker. DTNA manufactures and sells commercial vehicles of the Freightliner, Western Star and Thomas Built Buses brands.