Parker Poe Assists Austrian Company on Launch of First North American Automotive Parts Facility
June 24, 2014
CARTERSVILLE, GA – Economic development professionals with Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP have helped voestalpine Group develop its 17th production site in the United States. The voestalpine Automotive Body Parts Inc. in Cartersville, Georgia, recently held the grand opening of its new North American production operation and represents an investment of about $70 million that will create 220 new jobs.
The plant will manufacture ultra-high strength body-in-white components for premium car manufacturers in the region. This opening represents the completion of the first phase of an extensive internationalization program in the automotive sector by the Austria-based steel-based technology and capital goods company.
“We consulted the voestalpine leadership team in their evaluation of multiple industrial locations in the U.S. This site decision was driven most importantly by voestalpine’s desire to have logistical advantages that would allow the company to meet critical delivery schedules for its automotive OEM customers by having a well trained workforce, and a commitment by key state and local partners who were pro-business minded and willing to support voestalpine’s short- and long-term strategic growth plans. The company found this in Bartow County. We are very thankful for the relationship with voestalpine and to be able to serve them on this very important strategic corporate investment to better serve voestalpine’s automotive OEM customers in North America,” said Sam Moses, a Partner at Parker Poe.
The new state of the art facility – whose site selection was first announced by Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal in August 2012 – is part of voestalpine’s Metal Forming Division and is centrally located to the company’s automaking customers across the South. Several long-term contracts are in hand, voestalpine said, and it expects more as demand continues for its high-quality components.
“We are pleased once again to be able to help a company of such global reach work with state and local officials to find the best location to grow and prosper. European automakers are making their mark here, and they’re having a remarkable economic impact in the communities where they locate,” said Mark Simmons, a Principal with Parker Poe Consulting LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Parker Poe that provides diverse economic development services to clients in multiple states in the U.S. and in Mexico.
“We chose Cartersville in Bartow County as a central location in the midst of our customers here in the South. We looked for business friendly and future-oriented leadership and out of more than 30 candidates that we extensively looked at and had negotiations with, Cartersville was our choice due to their willingness to work with us, listen to our needs and make whatever was needed possible. Parker Poe was a valued partner in our site location evaluation process and has been very helpful in the start up of our new North American facility,” said Philipp Schulz, CEO of voestalpine Automotive Body Parts.
Parker Poe
Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP has 190 lawyers in five offices located in major markets across North Carolina and South Carolina. The Firm provides legal counsel to large commercial and public organizations on litigation, corporate and regulatory matters. For more information, please visit www.parkerpoe.com.
Parker Poe Consulting LLC
Parker Poe Consulting LLC is a South Carolina limited liability company and wholly-owned subsidiary of Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP. Parker Poe Consulting offers a full complement of services including economic development, site selection and incentive negotiation consultation to both foreign and domestic clients. For more information, please visit www.parkerpoeconsulting.com.
voestalpine in North America
The voestalpine Group generated overall revenues of EUR 11.5 billion in the 2012/13 business year. Eight percent of this revenue (around EUR 1 billion) was generated by the Group’s 2,500 employees at its 68 sites in North America. The largest Group company in the USA is voestalpine Nortrak; with around 1,000 employees and seven production and sales sites it is the market and technology leader in North America’s turnout technology segment. The Group is also strongly represented in the automotive, special steel, energy, and aviation sectors.
