Siemens is cranking up its Triangle footprint, with plans to add 350 jobs across two fast-growing Wake County towns, Knightdale and Wendell, as it ramps up local manufacturing to feed the power-hungry data center industry. The new positions will be split between a planned Knightdale power-devices plant and expanded operations at Siemens' long-running Wendell campus, all driven by soaring demand for data center power systems tied to AI computing and cloud services.
What Siemens Is Planning
According to The News & Observer, Siemens expects to create about 350 jobs across the two sites by 2028, with roughly 100 roles at a new Knightdale power-devices facility and around 200 added at the Wendell campus. The company told the paper it will manufacture power systems destined for data centers across the country, and local reporting has outlined early details on the Knightdale site location and hiring timeline.
Wendell Is Already A Manufacturing Hub
Siemens' Wendell plant is a 272,000-square-foot site that serves as the U.S. hub for part of its Electrification and Automation business and has been a presence in eastern Wake County for decades. Siemens highlights the facility's size and its ongoing workforce programs, and WRAL reported that the company invested $36 million in the Wendell operation last year as part of an expansion that could add about 200 jobs. The upgrades have included new prefabrication equipment and plans for an on-site microgrid aimed at boosting manufacturing resilience.
Siemens Says Demand Is Surging
Company executives are casting the new openings as a direct response to surging electricity needs from "increasing AI workloads," with Ruth Gratzke saying customer demand is "at an all-time high" as businesses scramble to upgrade infrastructure. That language appears in Siemens corporate materials and in prior announcements about its U.S. manufacturing push. Siemens has repeatedly pointed to data center and semiconductor markets as key growth engines for its electrification and automation lines.
Local Friction Over Data Center Growth
The buildout comes while nearby communities are already wrestling with what nonstop data center growth means on the ground. The town of Apex last week moved toward drafting a one-year moratorium on new data center approvals, after residents raised concerns about water use, traffic, and land use. WUNC reported that the proposed moratorium followed the withdrawal of a controversial 300-megawatt project in New Hill.
Jobs And Training
Economic development officials and local educators say the Siemens hiring wave could provide a reliable pipeline of manufacturing jobs for the region. The News & Observer notes that the company expects to bring workers on over the next several years, and area colleges such as Wake Technical Community College already offer apprenticeship and workforce programs tailored to manufacturers. Wake Tech's Eastern Wake and WakeWorks centers provide training that town leaders say will be crucial if Siemens fully follows through on its plans.
Officials in Knightdale and Wendell say they will keep working through permitting and site specifics as the company finalizes its moves, while county economic leaders watch for further updates. For now, the planned expansion signals how Wake County's industrial base is tilting more heavily toward electrical manufacturing built to serve the booming data center economy.
