Automotive Suppliers Roll into Mississippi -- Site Selection magazine, January 2002

T
he land has been cleared and the concrete poured, but the dust is far from settled on Canton, Miss.'s Nissan project. Local contractors are working diligently to meet Nissan's production launch deadline of summer 2003, and Nissan's first group of Mississippi employees began training on July 9, 2001.

Nissan's Canton, Miss., plant is on track for a production startup of summer 2003.

The Japanese automaker's move has certainly changed the pace of a once sleepy, rural state, and the tempo isn't about to slow. In fact, as Nissan moves forward with its project, automotive suppliers are pouring in to help prepare for the roll-out of the first vehicle. On July 17, 2001, eight groups announced plans to move into or near the Canton operation. Though still in the early phases at press time, construction of the supplier plants was expected to begin by year-end 2001.

Nissan Suppliers Locating in Mississippi

CalsonicKansei North America: Calsonic will supply front-end modules, exhaust systems, catalytic converters and A/C plumbing to Nissan. It is building two new plants: a 25,000-sq.-ft. (2,300-sq.-m.) plant adjacent to Nissan's Canton facility and a 150,000-sq.-ft. (13,900-sq.-m.) plant in Vicksburg.
Johnson Controls: The company will supply seats for vehicles built in Canton from its new 120,000-sq.-ft. (11,200-sq.-m.) facility in the Canton Industrial Center.
Mi-Tech Steel: Also locating an 80,000-sq.-ft. (7,400-sq.-m.) plant in Canton Industrial Center where it will process coiled steel.
Systems Electro-Coating LLC: The PPG Industries and Jackson, Miss.-based Systems Consultants Associates' joint venture will apply an anti-corrosion electrodeposition primer to sheet-metal components and parts from a 125,000-sq.-ft. (11,600-sq.-m.) plant to be built in the Canton Industrial Center. PPG will also supply automotive coatings for Nissan vehicles and plastic bumpers produced in Canton.
T&WA: The firm will build a 36,000-sq.-ft. (3,345-sq.-m.) plant adjacent to the Nissan plant, from which it will supply tire and wheel assemblies.
Tower Automotive: From a 160,000-sq.-ft. (14,900-sq.-m.) plant in the Canton Industrial Center, Tower will supply vehicle frames to Nissan.
Visteon and Lextron Corp.: Lextron/Visteon Automotive systems LLC will supply front-end modules and cockpit modules from its 9,500-sq.-ft. (883-sq.-m.) plant, which will be adjacent to the Nissan plant.

Three new production plants will be built adjacent to the Nissan plant to supply it with vehicle modules and components and four other plants will be built within 2 miles (3.2 km.) of the plant. An eighth plant will be built in Vicksburg, Miss. Production of these facilities will begin in time to support Nissan's roll-out schedule.
"We said we wanted to work with high-quality, competitive suppliers with a long-term view," says Emil Hassan, senior vice president, North American manufacturing, purchasing, quality and logistics. "We also said we are committed to a diverse supply base, and these supplier companies reflect that approach. The partnership between these local minority firms and Tier 1 automotive suppliers such as Visteon and PPG demonstrate a win-win situation that will be good for each company, for Nissan and for Mississippi."