Plant expansion is good news for Tennessee, Alcoa

Alcoa Inc. announced plans last month for a $275 million expansion of its Blount County operation that will eventually add 200 jobs. The expanded rolling mill operation will supply light, durable and recyclable aluminum sheet for the automotive industry, officials said.

Automobile manufacturing and its satellites are a big driver of Tennessee’s economy and one of the pillars of Gov. Bill Haslam ’s Jobs4TN economic development strategy. Tennessee boasts more than 900 auto suppliers and manufacturers. The emphasis on a robust automotive sector makes Tennessee’s economy stronger.

The Alcoa expansion is but one sprout of the growing automotive sector in Tennessee. Volkwagen Group of America’s Southeast Regional Distribution Center in the Roane Regional Business and Technology Park, just west of the Knox County line, has started operations, the Roane County News reported. The $40 million facility will employ at least 45, according to the Roane Alliance.

HP Pelzer Automotive Systems, a German parts manufacturer, plans to invest $28 million in a new 185,000-square-foot manufacturing facility at the Mt. Verd Industrial Park in Athens, Tenn. The company, which supplies acoustic and interior trim parts, will bring 200 jobs to the McMinn County facility.

VIAM Manufacturing Inc. recently announced a $9 million expansion of its North American headquarters in Manchester, Tenn. The manufacturer of floor, trunk and cargo mats will add 75 new jobs to its 487-employee workforce, the Tennessean reported.

And, of course, there are the “Big Three” automobile assembly plants - Volkswagen in Chattanooga, GM in Spring Hill and Nissan in Smyrna.

The Alcoa expansion is particularly welcome because the company previously announced it was permanently closing its mothballed smelting operation.

“I have to think this secures our future for another 25-year cycle,” Alcoa Tennessee Operations Location Manager Ken McMillen said at the May 1 news conference announcing the plans.

The project will involve expanding and converting the capacity at the rolling mill. McMillen said this will involve converting some can sheet capacity to produce high-strength, automotive sheet plus adding new equipment for that purpose. The mill will continue making aluminum sheet for beverage cans.

The expansion also represents a technological advancement for Alcoa Inc. The process will use a proprietary pre-treatment bonding technology to allow adhesive bonding of automotive structures to allow more cost-effective, mass production of “aluminum intensive vehicles.”

Construction work is set to begin this month and be completed in 2015.