Conti, Nokian on track with North America tire plants

Dayton, Tennessee – Nokian Tires and Continental Corp. are on schedule for new manufacturing facilities in North America, increasing capacity and incorporating new technology.

Both companies are aiming for 2020 commercial production deadlines for their facilities, which are both located in the southern US, with Nokian in Dayton and Continental in Clinton, Mississippi.

“A ramp-up phase will lead up to the site's start of commercial production, and exteriors and the production building are near complete,” said Wes Boling, marketing communication manager for Nokian.

Equipment installation is proceeding on schedule and hiring has begun.

Nokian is investing €320 million into the facility, which will be the company's first production plant in the US.

"The large-scale goal we reference all the time is trying to double sales in North America by 2023," Boling said.

The new plant, he added, will increase inventory, and enable the company to tailor products to this market.

The Dayton facility will run with a capacity of 4 million tires each year, and the capability to store an additional 600,000 tires onsite.

Continental also reached a milestone in its construction process with the opening of an on-site employee training centre last November at its Clinton location.

The employee training centre will support the recruitment and professional development of employees for the facility under construction, and houses classrooms, computer labs and technical equipment, said Michael Egner, project manager for Continental.

The construction of the facility is also on schedule, with machine installation and testing taking place in March, Egner said.

The start of production is planned for January 2020, with some trial production starting in October.

The facility will focus on truck and commercial vehicle tires, the second in the US producing for the Continental brand, alongside a facility in Mount Vernon, Illinois.

Continental also has a passenger tire production facility in Sumter, South Carolina, which recently broke ground on an expansion.

The Clinton facility will be able to produce 750,000 truck tires per year, with a ramp-up period from the start of its commercial production.