Category Archives: Facilities

Kawasaki Layoffs Finalized

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Kawasaki Motors Manufacturing laid off 320 employees last week following an earlier buyout offer to workers in their consumer products division, which produces their utility vehicles and other products.  Management reported that nearly all the layoffs were the result of voluntary acceptance of the buyout.  As a result, the consumer products workforce at the Lincoln, NE location has been reduced by 25% to approximately 900 workers.

Kawasaki’s consumer products division reported a sales decline of 22% for the fiscal year ending in March.  This is on par with first quarter declines recently reported by Polaris Industries and Arctic Cat.  Learn more:  Journalstar.com

BG Automotive Looking In Windsor, Ontario For Facilities

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BG Automotive C100 NEV

BG Automotive C100 NEV

BG Automotive is now looking in Windsor, Ontario for facilities to assemble their NEV, the C100.  According to the report, if funding can arranged, the company believes they can be producing vehicles within three months.  Windsor has an existing automotive manufacturing base and skilled workforce that appeals to the company.

As noted in a previous post, the company plans to develop six facilities around the country which can each produce up to 15,000 vehicles.  Other states being considered include Connecticut, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Georgia and Massachusetts.  Learn more  Windsorstar.com

Kawasaki To Cut Workforce

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According to a press release from Kawasaki Motors, 320 employees at their Lincoln, NE plant are being offered buyouts.  Besides utility vehicles, the plant produces all-terrain vehicles, personal watercraft and other leisure  vehicles.  The buyout offer follows the laying off of 170 employees in January of this year.  The press release states that, “Kawasaki is experiencing increased inventory levels due to rapidly declining sales”.  Management also remaked that the plant has been operating on short weeks since the beginning of the year.  Learn more   omaha.com

Minneapolis Expands Zones For NEV Dealerships

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I thought it would be interesting to track these type of changes in the market.  Once or twice before I have seen a story along the lines of an existing golf car dealership obtaining local government approval to expand their lineup of vehicles to include NEVs.  In this case, NEVs will be able to be sold in more and less dense commercial zones in the city.  Previously they were treated like used cars when it came to this type of zoning issue.

Learn more:  secondward.blogspot.com

Smith Electric Vehicles Chooses Kansas City As Plant Site

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Later today Smith Electric Vehicles U.S. Corp is expected to announce that they have chosen Kansas City, MO as the site for their assembly plant. The plant will be located near the Kansas City International Airport and is expected to eventually employ 200 people within three years. The consortium involving Ford and British based Tanfield Group is expected to invest $5 million in the plant that will produce an electric version of Ford’s Transit Connect delivery vans and Smith’s Newton electric truck.

The first vehicles to be produced will be the Newtons with a third quarter launch date as the target. The company expects to produce 10,000 vehicles annually for a US market estimated to be 200,000 for delivery trucks of this size. The Transit Connect vehicles are expected to roll off the line in 2010.

The plant will be located near Kokam America Inc, a lithium ion battery manufacturer, and Fords assembly plant for Escape and Mariner hybrids. In addition, Valence Technology, battery supplier to Smith’s UK parent company, is located relatively close in Austin, TX. Learn more: KMBC.com

and bizjournal.com

In related news, Smith Electric Vehicles announced they sold their first electric Newton in the Ireland market to a building materials retailer. The company will use the vehicle for deliveries. Ireland plans to have 10% of all their vehicles be electric powered by 2020. Learn more: greencarcongress.com

Update: Smith Vehicles will receive an estimated $2 million in tax credits and $1 million in job training assistance from the Missouri state government .  The company is leasing an 80,000 sq. ft. facility and expects to create 120 jobs by 2010.  Learn more:  bizjournal.com

TH!NK Planning US Based Production

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In the near future Norwegian-based electric vehicle manufacturer TH!NK is expected to announce plans for manufacturing a two seat city vehicle in the US. The company is hoping to take advantage of government funding for electric and hybrid vehicles. The vehicle would be available in mid-2010 if all goes according to plan.

Recently in financial difficulty, the company received a $5.7 million loan from the Ener1 Group which holds a majority stake in the battery maker for the vehicle. Learn More

Update: Initial production plans for first year production of 2,500 units. The company will be applying for low-interest loans from the US Department of Energy’s $25-billion Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing (ATVMIP) program. Michigan is among eight states being considered for the facility. Learn more

Private Equity Firm Acquires Controlling Interest In Tomcar

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In February Markstone Capital Partners of Los Angeles acquired a controlling interest in Tomcar, which makes offroad vehicles for military and industrial applications.  Terms of the agreement were not released.

Last year Tomcar had received an investment from Markstone and had opened up a 85,000 square foot contract manufacturing facility in Auburn Hills, MI in partnership with German-based EDAG.  At full production the facility can produce just over 10,000 vehicles per year but initial production targets were for 2,000 vehicles in 2008 and 5,000 in 2009.  According to reports, the first vehicles rolling of the line were for a custom order and vehicles for the general market start this month.

The vehicles, which retail starting between $14,000 and $15,000, come in two-seater, four-seater or mini-truck versions.  They have applications in military, mining, security patrol, farm and ranch, recreation and tourism uses.

Total investment in the plant was estimated to be $9.5 million. Tomcar also has facilities in Israel and Phoenix, AZ.  Learn more

BG Autmotive Looking For Manufacturing Sites

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A local news story reports that Philadelphia based BG Automotive is looking for manufacturing sites in the Boston area including Bridgewater, Taunton, Fall River and New Bedford. The facility will be for mass production of their C100 neighborhood electric vehicle and employ about 150 people per shift. The company is looking for a site for a 60,000 – 100,000 square foot facility and is currently seeking funding.

Since the vehicle’s parts are imported and most of the activity at the facility would be assembly the company expects vehicle production could begin in as little as four months once a facility is found. The chassis and body of the vehicle are imported while components like the motor, controller and batteries are manufactured in the U.S. Delivery of the first vehicle is expected to be in April or May of 2009 according to the company’s website.

Another news source also states that

The company is planning to develop six facilities in the next 24 months for a total production of about 100,000 vehicles by year-end 2010.

I thought these latter figures were quite aggressive so I placed a call with BG Automotive and was able to speak with Barry Bernstein, the founder of the company.

He confirmed that the company is looking to develop six facilities with the ability to produce around 15,000 vehicles each annually. While our estimates of the LSV market size the market at less than 10,000 vehicles a year, Bernstein noted that interest in their vehicle has been higher than expected with over 44,000 people signing up on their website. No deposit is required to sign up initially but as the actual production date moves closer a deposit is required.

Bernstein also noted that the facilities will be designed to easily switch over to highway-speed electric vehicle production which is in the company’s long term plans. Besides Massachusetts, the Philadelphia based company is also looking to place facilities close to major LSV markets including California, Georgia, Texas, Northern Florida, Pennsylvania and the Tennessee – Kentucky area. They are applying for loan guarantees and other support from both federal and state agencies but will be able to scale down their facilities if they cannot garner this support. Bernstein expects to have more information on their site selection in about two weeks.

ZAP Developments

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Last week ZAP announced that partner Integrity Manufacturing had completed its application for a $200 million loan from the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Advanced Technology Vehicles Manufacturing Loan Program. The loan is for a manufacturing facility in Kentucky for producing ZAP vehicles as well as other all electric vehicles.

Later this month, at the National Automobile Dealers Association conference in New Orleans, ZAP plans to debut their new Shuttle and XL Truck. These LSVs have a top speed f 25mph and a range of 30 miles. The Shuttle has an MSRP of $14,700 and the truck will list for $14,500.

Firms Collaborate To Boost US Advanced Battery Manufacturing

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Last month an effort was announced by fourteen U.S. technology companies to develop advanced battery manufacturing capabilities in the U.S. The batteries will be lithium ion and targeted for hybrid and electric vehicles.

Seeing the strategic importance of securing a battery supply and developing technological expertise, the companies are trying to secure $1 billion in federal aid to build a manufacturing plant. Firms involved in the effort include Johnson Controls, Enersys, 3M co., Mobius Power, FMC and ActaCell. While some of the technical know-how behind advanced batteries has been developed in the U.S., the manufacturing has migrated overseas to countries like China where, according to the article, over four dozen advanced battery factories are being built.

In a related story, GM has also identified battery manufacturing as a core competency and is planning to build their own lithium ion battery plant to supply their Volt vehicle production.

While the advanced battery production is clearly aimed at highway speed vehicles, the developments should help efforts to improve the performance of battery powered LSVs. While most of these vehicles use lead-acid type batteries, some are using or exploring the use of more advanced batteries. More production, competition and technological advances will only make these batteries more feasible for use in LSVs and utility vehicles in the future.