Arconic Inc. <http://www.arconic.com/>, headquartered in New York, has announced an that it will invest nearly $100 million to expand its hot mill capability and add downstream equipment capabilities to manufacture industrial and automotive aluminum products in its Tennessee Operations facility near Knoxville, Tennessee. The project, which Arconic says is expected to create 70 new jobs, is underway, with completion expected by the fourth quarter of 2020.
Tracie Gliozzi, the Pittsburgh-based director of communications for the company’s Global Rolled Products and Transportation and Construction Solutions group, says the project also will involve general site improvements, material handling upgrades and an expansion of the plant’s finishing capabilities, allowing Arconic to perform more of those services in-house for its manufacturing customers.
The company says customer commitments for most of the anticipated increase in capacity are in place and the remainder is expected to be filled by projected customer demand.
“This investment will add capacity to meet growing demand for industrial products and automotive aluminum sheet,” says Tim Myers, president of Arconic’s Global Rolled Products business. “With this expansion, we are further diversifying the portfolio of one of our largest North American facilities.”
The industrial market consists of products made with common alloy aluminum sheet, which is used in applications for commercial transportation, appliances, machinery and construction, Arconic says.
In the automotive market, Arconic says aluminum is used in numerous vehicle applications, and demand for automotive aluminum sheet in North America is expected to double in the next 10 years, according to a report published in July 2017 by independent research firm Ducker Worldwide.
Arconic says its expansion of the Tennessee facility’s capacity continues its growth strategy which originated with its $300 million expansion (completed in 2015) to capture growing demand for automotive aluminum sheet.
Gliozzi says the expansion is welcomed by the Alcoa, Tennessee, community that is home to the plant. “We have a long history in that community,” she says.
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