Tennessee, the new home of Volkswagen's new $1 billion auto assembly plant in Chattanooga (above), has repeated as the top finisher in Business Facilities' annual state ranking for Automotive Manufacturing Strength. "With new VWs rolling off the assembly line at a world-class, energy-efficient manufacturing facility and top-tier suppliers lining up to set up operations in the Chattanooga area, Tennessee has cemented its position as the top automotive powerhouse in the U.S.," Business Facilities Editor-in-Chief Jack Rogers said. He noted Tennessee has a skilled workforce, low-cost utilities and a burgeoning supplier network attractive to automakers.
Not mentioned by the publication is the fact that Tennessee is a right-to-work state that allows manufacturers to more easily avoid unionized workforces. Workers’ at Volkswagen’s new plant are not represented by a union, nor are Nissan workers in Smryna, Tenn. General Motors workers at the now-closed Spring Hill, Tenn., plant, formerly the exclusive assembler of Saturn cars, were represented by the United Auto Workers union.
[ Govt Motors CLOSED down their TN plant. ]
An analysis by the University of Tennessee predicted that VW’s investment in Tennessee will boost incomes in the region by $511 million annually and generate more than $55 million per year in new tax revenues for both state and local governments. The Chattanooga assembly plant is designed to produce 150,000 vehicles a year, with the first being the Volkswagen Passat. It will employ about 2,000 workers at full production; indirect employment at local suppliers and other spin-offs is expected to exceed 11,000.
Major parts producers are making plans to locate or expand in the Chattanooga area to supply the VW plant. Several already are in place, including Gestamp Corp., which is investing $90 million in an automotive parts stamping operation at Enterprise South Industrial Park. The company expects the operation to employ 230.?Gestamp has secured a contract to supply structural components for the production of the new mid-sized sedan that Volkswagen has designed specifically for the U.S. market. VW says it will source 85 percent of the components for the new vehicle from North American suppliers. In Smyrna, Tenn., Nissan has been preparing a $1.6-billion production complex to begin rolling out electric Nissan Leaf vehicles by late 2012. The Japanese automaker plans to have the plant assemble about 200,000 battery modules and as many as 150,000 Nissan Leaf electric vehicles annually.
Business Facilities’ top 10 states ranking in the automotive category were:
1. Tennessee
2. South Carolina
3. Georgia
4. Kentucky
5. Alabama
6. Michigan (only #6 after those 5 southern states)
7. Ohio
8. Mississippi
9. Texas
10. Indiana
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