Miba invest $30 million in new sintered component manufacturing site and engine bearing production line in the USA
June 30, 2010
Miba AG, headquartered in Laakirchen, Austria, opened a new production site for sintered components in McConnelsville, Ohio, USA, on June 29 2010. At the new site, about 60 employees will produce four million engine and transmission sintered components per year for use in passenger cars. Miba have invested $16 million in the new plant. At the same time, sister site Miba Bearings US is launching a new production line for high-performance engine bearings for trucks. Miba Bearings US employs 240 people; the investment was around $14 million.
“At the new Miba Sinter USA site we are producing energy-efficient engine and transmission components for the North American market. This means we are near the customer and are producing large volumes in the same place where they are distributed,” said Peter Mitterbauer, CEO of the Miba Group. Construction of the new site, which was built alongside the sister plant Miba Bearings US, began in 2009. At the first stage of expansion, Miba is running two production lines. 60 employees will produce an output of 4 million parts per year. The products being produced at the new sinter plant are high-precision, high-strength and technologically demanding components used in engines and transmissions for passenger cars. “These new technologies significantly reduce fuel consumption and emissions in passenger cars. The Miba Group was at the forefront in the development of powder metallurgy components for these uses. Now we are strengthening our market position in the USA through our local production site,” said Harald Neubert, CEO of the Miba Sinter Group.
Miba creates about 60 new jobs at the new site. Miba’s customers, internationally prominent engine and transmission manufacturers, are increasingly adopting new technologies for smaller power trains in more energy-efficient vehicles. Additional production lines have been planned for the next phase of expansion.
Synergies with Miba Bearings US and the valuable support of friendly local policies were key factors in Miba’s decision to build the new plant in McConnelsville. Miba has been producing in Michigan, USA, since 1989. The takeover of the engine bearings site, Miba Bearings US, in McConnelsville followed in 2001. Together with the new sinter site, a new production line for high-performance engine bearings is being opened, which also creates new job opportunities in McConnelsville.
New production line for high-performance engine bearings
Roughly $14 million was invested in the new line, which produces lead-free engine bearings for use in a new generation of heavy-duty truck engines. Customers are producers of truck diesel engines in America. “Being located near the customer is considered an absolute competitive advantage. This bearing technology has been in development since 2004. Miba’s high-tech materials are what sold the client on us,” explained Wolfgang Litzlbauer, CEO Miba Bearing Group. The new production line has a yearly output of 4 million parts. In the future, about 70,000 engines per year will be equipped with main and conrod bearings from the new production site in the USA.
“Our clear strategic orientation is toward high technology. The two plants in McConnelsville, with currently around 260 employees, comprise an important production centre for Miba and will further grow. These high-performance sites secure our long-term ability to provide high-quality products to our American customers,” said Peter Mitterbauer, Chairman of the Miba Management Board.
