Winter 2010
ALABAMA
Globe Specialty Metals Restarts Alabama Plant
In February, New York-based Globe Specialty Metals reopened its silicon metal and ferrosilicon alloys plant in Selma, Ala. The plant was idled during the recession. The plant can produce 27,000 tons of silicon metal and alloys annually. The reopening means 90 workers have been rehired by the company.
VW Supplier Fehrer Automotive Locating in Gadsden, Ala.
Kitzingen, Germany-based Fehrer Automotive announced in February it will locate in the former Advance Auto Parts building in Gadsden, Ala. to supply the new Volkswagen plant being built in Chattanooga with seat pads. The company will also supply the Mercedes-Benz plant in Tuscaloosa, Ala. with the same product. About 100 jobs are expected to be created in the deal.
Hanwha L&C Alabama Beginning Second Alabama Expansion
Hanwha L&C announced in the winter quarter it will begin its second major expansion of its facility in Opelika, Ala. In addition to automotive components, the company makes plastic products for the construction and packaging industry. The $11 million expansion will include 25 new jobs.
Alabama Company Lands Auto Parts Contract
In the winter quarter, Citation Corp. of Brewton, Ala. landed a $50 million contract to manufacture brake components for hybrid cars. The company will supply iron-case brake parts for small hybrid cars and crossover utility vehicles for the North American market for Continental Teves.
Korean Auto Parts Manufacturer Locating in Alabama
INZI Controls Alabama, a new company formed by Koo-Ryong Jung after acquiring Toledo Molding and Die, is setting up shop in Elba, Ala. The company will continue to provide injection and blow molded automotive parts. More than 200 new jobs are expected to be created.
Parts Maker Expanding in Alabama
SaeHaeSung Alabama, a tier two parts supplier in Andalusia, Ala., announced in December it is expanding its facilities by about one-third. The Korean-based company, which supplies several OEMs in the South, currently employs about 60 workers.
ARKANSAS
Auto Parts Supplier Expanding in Arkansas, Creating 250 New Jobs
Saint Jean Industries, an auto parts manufacturer and supplier, announced in January that it will expand its manufacturing plant in Heber Springs, Ark. creating about 250 new jobs with an investment of $14 million. The Heber Springs plant makes aluminum parts for the automotive industry. France-based Saint Jean said the expansion is a result of several significant orders placed with the company, specifically from ZF, a German supplier to Ford and GM.
FLORIDA
Lithium-ion Facility Set for Florida
Bren-Tronics Energy Systems (BES) announced in the winter quarter it will locate in an existing facility in Alachua County, Fla. to research and manufacture lithium-ion cells for rechargeable batteries. Renovations and upgrades of the facility are expected to cost approximately $10 million and will occur over a two-year period. BES expects to create 15 jobs in the deal.
GEORGIA
Welding Robot Supplier Sets Up Shop in Atlanta
Germany-based Nimak Gmbh, which makes welding robots for automotive assembly factories, is setting up an office in Atlanta. The company has installed about 800 welding robots at the Mercedes-Benz facility in Tuscaloosa, Ala., and is installing about 400 at the new Volkswagen plant being built in Chattanooga, Tenn.
Yazaki Locating NA Headquarters in Georgia
Yazaki Corp., based in Iwata, Japan, will locate its North American headquarters in Gainesville, Ga. in Hall County. The company manufactures fuel tanks for original equipment manufactures. Yazaki will initially employ 20 workers.
KENTUCKY
Kentucky Gov. Beshear Announces Funding for Federal Battery Lab
In the winter quarter, Gov. Steve Beshear and Cabinet for Economic Development Secretary Larry Hayes announced the approval of state funding of up to $3.5 million for the Kentucky-Argonne Battery Manufacturing Research and Development Center in Lexington. The state funds will be matched with up to $3.5 million in federal funds. In April of 2009, the Commonwealth of Kentucky, the University of Kentucky and University of Louisville announced a partnership with the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory to establish a National Battery Manufacturing R&D Center in Kentucky. The Argonne-managed facility will aid nationwide efforts to develop and deploy a domestic supply of advanced battery technologies for vehicle applications to assist in securing U.S. energy independence and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The center's major goals are to support the development of advanced lithium-ion batteries; facilitate collaborations between federal labs, universities, manufacturers, suppliers and end-users; develop advanced manufacturing technologies to reduce battery production costs; and accelerate the commercialization of technologies at national labs and universities.
Akebono on Expansion Jag in the Southern Automotive Corridor
Akebono Corp., which recently acquired Robert Bosch LLC's North American Brake Division, is adding 13,000 square feet of office space at its headquarter operation in Elizabethtown, Ky. The deal will add 70 new jobs. In addition, the company is consolidating former Bosch plants in the U.S. and Mexico to Clarksville, Tenn. and another facility in South Carolina. Akebono plans to invest $13.5 million in new equipment at the Clarksville, Tenn. plant with 300 new hires. Following its Tennessee brake plant expansion, Akebono announced plans to locate a new facility in Lexington County, S.C. The $35.6 million investment is expected to generate 283 new jobs.
MISSISSIPPI
Parker Hannifin Expands Mississippi Operations
Parker Hannifin, a leader in motion control technologies and systems, announced in February the expansion of the company's Batesville, Miss. operations. The expansion accommodates additional production of refrigerant control and containment components for automotive, heavy-duty truck and off-road air conditioning applications. The expansion will create 50 new jobs.
NORTH CAROLINA
Parts Maker Relocates HQ, Expands in North Carolina
Wilbert Plastic Services, a supplier of molded plastic parts for the automotive, industrial equipment and custom parts markets, is expanding its operations in Gaston County, N.C. and will relocate its headquarters from Chicago to Belmont, N.C. The company produces parts for heavy trucks. The $5.7 million project will create 41 new jobs.
SOUTH CAROLINA
Pure Power Technologies Celebrates in Columbia, S.C.
In the winter quarter, Columbia, S.C.-based Pure Power Technologies, a Navistar company, celebrated the inauguration of the company's research and development operation in the Columbia Technical Center. In October, Navistar acquired the assets of Continental Diesel Systems to manufacture fuel injection systems for its MaxxForce diesel engines. Pure Power will operate a R&D center in Columbia and a manufacturing plant in nearby Blythewood, S.C. The two operations were former Continental assets and Pure Power has retained the jobs that would have been lost after Continental announced the closure of the two facilities.
Fisher Barton Expands in South Carolina
Fisher Barton, an OEM supplier of precision metal stampings and welded assemblies for the automotive industry and other sectors, announced it will expand its Laurens County, S.C. facility. The $2 million investment is expected to generate 15 new jobs.
Fifty New Auto Supplier Jobs Created in Gaffney, S.C.
Suminoe Textile of America (STA) announced in the winter quarter that it will expand its operations in Cherokee County, S.C. The company, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Suminoe Textile Ltd. of Osaka, Japan, is a leading supplier of textile products for the North American automotive market. As part of the $6.5 million expansion, Suminoe will open a new manufacturing facility in Gaffney that will house 50 workers.
TENNESSEE
Automotive IT Company Opens Office in Chattanooga
Wolfsburg, Germany-based Honigsberg & Duvel Corp., an information technology company that specializes in the automotive sector, has leased office space in downtown Chattanooga with plans to employ 30 workers within 12 months and possibly 100 in two years. About 70 percent of the company's work in Germany is for Volkswagen.
SL America Awarded VW Contract
SL America Corp., located in Clinton, Tenn., has been awarded the contract to supply automatic shifter assemblies for Volkswagen Group of North America. The contract is SL America's first with Volkswagen. The company will supply the automatic shifters for both the midsize sedan VW will assemble in Chattanooga as well as for vehicles the German automaker assembles in Puebla, Mexico. SL America produces gearshift systems, pedal assemblies and exterior lighting for several major automotive manufacturers, including Hyundai and GM. The South Korean firm is expected to invest $35 million as a result of the new contract and hire 300 more workers that will be housed in a 100,000-square-foot addition to its current facility.
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