Central Zone – Issue 80

The French assembler Renault announced its plans to start the production of its new pick-up Alaskan in Mexico by the second half of 2016. Jose Luis Montiel, General Director of Renault, explained that this new vehicle can be assembled without investing in the construction of a new plant. This is because of its strategical alliance with Nissan, allowing for the use their facilities in the Ciudad Industrial del Valle de Cuernavaca (CIVAC), located in Morelos.

 

 

 

 

 

The Japanese Company Sekisui Plastics announced that by 2016 a new synthetic resin production plant will be established in Mexico. The factory will be built in the State of Guanajuato and will start operations by August 2016. Most of its production will be resin foam. This is a material with the property to absorb impacts, and for this reason it is used in auto parts such as fenders and in packing boxes for electronic devices.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gentherm, an automotive parts manufacturer, announced the construction of a new production center to be located in Celaya, Guanajuato. Currently the Company has two other production centers in Ciudad Acuña, Coahuila. This plant will have a 1.3-hectare surface and will generate 1,500 direct jobs. Heaters for car seats and other industrial products will be produced in this facility. It will be the third Gentherm plant in Mexico and it is expected to start-up operations by the third quarter of 2016.

The Japanese Company Hajime Industries will be established in Jalisco with an initial investment of US$2 million, announced Tamizo Taira, President of the firm. This transnational company is specialized in plastic injection and manufacture of precision resin components for the automotive industry. The creation of 33 high quality jobs is expected and they will only be filled by Mexican workers. Hajime Industries will be established in the Colinas del Lago Industrial Park, which is located in the Municipality of Lagos de Moreno. It is estimated that operations will start sometime before 2016.

 

 

 

 

The Mexican Company Cremeria Americana and the Austrian Company Backaldrin International formalized their alliance by inaugurating the first Backaldrin Americas´ flour plant. It is located in the Toluca 2000 Industrial Park, in Toluca, State of Mexico. The operation requires an investment of US$2.4 million. The objective of this trade pact between these two firms is to produce and distribute self-rising flours for the Mexican baking industry, as well as the entire continent. The industrial center has a production capacity of 3,000 tons of flour yearly and is seeking to position 300 high quality Backaldrin products in Mexico and the Americas.

The German Company Henkel invested US$727,200 to expand the facilities of its adhesives plant located in Salamanca, Guanajuato. This plant will produce the Teroson PV 8500D sealant for vehicle manufacturing. It is expected that with the production of this sealant, the Salamanca plant´s production volume will reach a growth of two percent. This was pointed out by Rodolfo Milan, Operative Director for the Adhesives Technologies business of Latin America. The market that Henkel wants to reach is located in Guanajuato, where six automaker plants are established. These include: Mazda; General Motors; Honda; Volkswagen; Ford and Toyota.

The Volkswagen Group´s subsidiary, MAN Trucks & Bus Mexico, forecasts an investment of US$50 million in Mexico. US$20 million will be allocated for new processes and launches. The remaining US$30 million will be used to meet the new emission regulations taking effect in the country within the next two years. Leonardo Soloaga, MAN´s General Director, said that they plan to double the production of the Queretaro plant by reaching 2,000 trucks produced per year. It is also expected to adopt the Euro V and EPA 2013 regulations. These are the cutting-edge technologies aimed at reducing pollutant emissions.

 

Hino Motors, Toyota Group´s Truck Division, said that the assembly of three new models will be incorporated at its Silao plant by the year 2016. This includes a bus version and two medium-sized trucks. The bus model is the rear engine chassis 1425. Meanwhile, the model 1727 units of the 500 series will be the first off the production line. They will come with a 6x2 and 6x4 configuration and they will be assembled at the Guanajuato facilities. With these three models, production will be increased next year from 1,000 to 1,100 units. Hino Motors expects to sell 5,000 units by 2020, a number representing a 10% market share.