Turkish hose maker Teklas to open first US factory 

Istanbul – A Turkey-based automotive rubber hose maker is poised to bring its first manufacturing facility to the US.

Teklas said it is spending $6.5 million (€5.3 million) to open the site in Gordon County, Georgia, and expects to hire 120 workers at the new facility.

Teklas makes a variety of fluid circulation systems for automotive applications, including hoses and pipes made from rubber, plastic and metal.

Production at the 200,000-sq.-ft. facility in Calhoun, Georgia, is expected to begin next spring. 

Jobs will be available in a variety of skill levels, according to the Georgia Department of Economic Development. They include advanced manufacturing, management and supervisory positions.

"Our Calhoun location will help us be closer to our main customers," Teklas Regional Director Arcan Ergur said in a statement.

The Georgia Department of Economic Development highlighted Teklas' work with electric vehicles when discussing the project.

"As the automotive industry continues to transform and move toward electric vehicles and e-mobility, we will work to foster an ecosystem of manufacturers and suppliers on the leading edge of the industry's transition," agency Commissioner Pat Wilson said in a statement.

The state indicated the Georgia location "will include assembly lines to serve the most prominent original equipment manufacturers in the industry."

Along with operations in Turkey, Teklas has plants in Bulgaria, Serbia, China and Mexico. Sales offices are in Germany and France. 

The new US location will be the company's 10th manufacturing site and serve as its North American headquarters. The company currently has about 5,600 workers.

Teklas' production of rubber-injected parts began in 1971, and rubber hose manufacturing started two years later. Windshield wiper products were introduced in 1978.

The company has been particularly active regarding expansion in recent years, including a new investment for a production facility in Vratsa, Bulgaria, last year, in addition to and another site in Kardzhali, Bulgaria, in 2017.

Teklas decided to move into Mexico with a production facility in Aguascalientes in 2016, just one year after establishing a location in Vladicin, Serbia, and two years after opening two production plants in Kardzhali. 

The company's move into China took place in 2012 with a production site in Chang Zing.

Teklas' decision to expand internationally began in 2006 when the firm made its first overseas investment in its initial plant in Kardzhali.

Teklas exports 90% of its products and has customers in 35 countries, according to its website.