Subaru Supplier Growing in Frankfort
(Rendering Provided/IEDC)
Subscriber Benefit
As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowA manufacturer of automotive seats and safety units has announced plans to grow its Clinton County operations. NHK Seating of America Inc., which is also a supplier for Subaru of Indiana Automotive in Lafayette, will invest $38 million to build and equip at 383,000-square-foot facility in Frankfort and create up to 100 jobs by the end of 2024. The Indiana Economic Development Corp. says the project will more than triple the company’s footprint in the state.
The new facility will be located near its existing 152,000-square-foot plant along State Road 28. Construction on the new plant is slated to begin next month and is expected to be complete in March 2021.
“NHK Seating of America is pleased to announce the expansion of our manufacturing operations in the state of Indiana,” Richard Reck, vice president of NHK Seating, said in a news release. “NHK Seating started production in the state of Indiana in 1988. NHK Seating’s continued investment in its Indiana operation is credited to Subaru of Indiana’s continued growth, and the state’s continued support. NHK Seating will launch three new production lines at the new Frankfort facility over the next three years.”
NHK Seating is a subsidiary of Japan-based NHK Spring Co. Ltd. The parent company employs about 20,000 employees worldwide, including 825 in Frankfort.
The company plans to begin hiring immediately for a variety of positions of seat assembly/production associates, material handlers and forklift operators, production line and material supervisors, among others.
The IEDC has offered NHK Seating up to $250,000 in conditional tax credits, which the company will not be eligible to claim until Hoosier workers are hired for the new jobs. Additionally, the IEDC is offering up to $750,000 to the community from the Industrial Development Grant Fund, which will support infrastructure improvement at the new site.
The announcement comes on the heels of Subaru of Indiana Automotive’s plans to invest $158 million in its Lafayette plant and create up to 350 jobs.
