Ficosa: Cookeville plant its most advanced worldwide

From left, Masahisa Shibata, Panasonic Corp.; Jose Maria Pujol, president of Ficosa; and Javier Pujol, CEO, Ficosa, participate in a tree planting ceremony at the Cookeville factory during a celebration in October.
From left, Masahisa Shibata, Panasonic Corp.; Jose Maria Pujol, president of Ficosa; and Javier Pujol, CEO, Ficosa, participate in a tree planting ceremony at the Cookeville factory during a celebration in October.
From left, Masahisa Shibata, Panasonic Corp.; Jose Maria Pujol, president of Ficosa; and Javier Pujol, CEO, Ficosa, participate in a tree planting ceremony at the Cookeville factory during a celebration in October.

COOKEVILLE – Ficosa, a top-tier automotive provider, officially celebrated its new state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Cookeville with a grand opening Friday.

The Cookeville facility, at 270,000 square feet, produces rear view systems for automotive manufacturers like Nissan, Ford, Volkswagen, Fiat Chrysler and General Motors. The plant has an average production capacity of 4.5 million rear view mirrors and will add nearly 500 new and advanced manufacturing jobs.

Construction started on the cutting-edge production center in June 2015 and wrapped in April. Total investment marked more than $50 million; the new plant is equipped with the sector’s latest technology – and is considered the most advanced in Ficosa’s global portfolio.

The event was attended by Congressman Diane Black, Cookeville Mayor Ricky Shelton, Putnam County Executive Randy Porter, and other main authorities of the area and key automotive manufacturers.

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“Today marks a great day for Ficosa and Tennessee,” Javier Pujol, CEO of Ficosa, said. “This new facility is a strategic move that allows the consolidation of key operations and enables a further future growth in one of the largest automobile markets in the world, where Ficosa has been present since 1994. By opening these new premises we are not only improving the group’s efficiency and operational capacity in the region, but also reinforcing our commitment to bring more advanced manufacturing jobs to the U.S. and to help lay the foundation for a more successful manufacturing future in the state of Tennessee.”

The new plant adds hundreds of new jobs to Cookeville and new job positions open daily, from production and project managers, technicians and engineers, to human resource specialists and assembly and warehouse workers. Those who are interested in applying for a job should send their resumes to jobscookeville@ficosa.com.

In addition, Pujol said the Cookeville facility also strengthens the company’s business alliance with Panasonic – which started in 2015 – in North America (United States and Mexico).

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“We are boosting a plan to align the industrial strategy of Ficosa with Panasonic in the region of North America, in order to accelerate the launch of new products in the areas of connectivity, efficiency and safety. This plan allows us to support the growth of the local market and increase our capacity in R&D (research and development) in mirrors, shifters and new technologies that we are developing together with Panasonic, bringing together our technological capabilities with the know-how in electronics of the Japanese company.”

In June, Ficosa North America was awarded four contracts from two American OEMs to produce 8.9 million units of rear-view mirrors over a period of five years. Three of the four orders will be produced at the new Cookeville’s plant, with an estimated economic value of $460 million. Production on those contracts is scheduled to start first quarter of 2018.

The company is the first to locate in the new Highlands Business Park, which is jointly owned by the City of Cookeville and Putnam County.

 

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