Southern Automotive Alliance Magazine Fall 2019

FALL 2019

INDUSTRY OUTLOOK: Industry watches tariffs, a stalled USMCA and UAW contract negotiations

SAC2019 PREVIEW OEMS, Suppliers, Associations and Students Come Together in Nashville

Executive Q&A:

LYNDA HILL

of Frost Brown Todd: Making the case for automotive

VISION Dean Sicking: safety expert talks about saving lives by design

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2019

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volume 4 number 4

Faces of the Industry 44 Hollie Pegg

Always on the go promoting automotive and economic development for Alabama

46 Jennifer Mead

An exhibitor at SAC2019, her Georgia-based company S-2International provides third party transportation management

Supplier Profile 48 Southeastern Tool and Design is known for creative, quickturnaround automation services

Departments

Dean Sicking, a professor at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, leads the way when it comes to safety innovations for drivers on race tracks and on the streets.

10 From the Editor 12 Benchmarks/NewsHub 52 Kudos 56 Regional Reports 64 Industry Indicators/ Stocks 65 By the Numbers 66 Career Notes 67 Index

Features

32 SAC2019 PREVIEW: This year’s premier

20 EXECUTIVE Q&A Frost Brown Todd’s Lynda Hill talks about protecting the automotive industry

36 SPOTLIGHT A look at the ever-expanding roster

24 EXECUTIVE Q&A Jeneen Horton explains how she got to Toyota and why SAWF is vital for automotive’s future

54 VISION UAB’s Dean Sicking brings world-renowned expertise to the science of safety

28 INDUSTRY OUTLOOK The industry faces

The Southern States Automotive Contractors Association builds connective tissue between construction pros across the industry

challenges from tariffs, Congressional delay on the USMCA and more

southern auto conference hits Music City, and here’s a bit of what to expect

of cars, trucks and buses made in the Southern region

68 SAC 2019 SPONSOR PROFILE

ON THE COVER: TAMA board member Lynda Hill is part of a team of industry-specific lawyers at Frost Brown Todd taking on cases for auto makers and suppliers.

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From the Editor

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ts kind of amazing the ways cars have changed in just a few years. Two decades ago, the notion of a car with a pop-up screen that displayed not only entertainment options, but useful tech like back-up cameras was essentially the stuff of science fiction. Maybe the Batmobile had that kind of stuff, or maybe KITT the talking car from Knight Rider.

But regular folks had to be content with cars that had CD players, not Bluetooth, that might have sported antennas on the front corner or near the back, but certainly not on the roof, that featured a version of lane-keeping assist that was otherwise known as a backseat driver.

Every day, car manufacturers are figuring out ways to make their products more fuel efficient (no matter the roll-\up of previous government mandates), safer, more environmentally friendly, more comfortable and more responsive to the needs of drivers and passengers. Of course, they’re also trying to figure out how to sell more of them, with significant inventory crowding lots at dealerships and auxiliary lots, with some OEMS shifting away from sedans in favor of SUVs, and with various incentives being offered to move products that were meant to move.

So there’s a lot to think about if you’re in the car business. And a lot of the people who are doing that thinking, and forecasting and trying to catch the next wave will be in Nashville Sept. 25-27 for the Southern Automotive Conference. This year’s SAC is expected to be packed with exhibitions and innovations, and discussions of about the state of the automotive industry. And so this issue of Southern Automotive Alliance magazine is also packed with SAC-related content.

Nearly every feature story this issue highlights someone or some company involved in making the Southern Automotive Conference a success, as a part of their efforts to make the industry succeed. Suppliers, sponsors, interesting people you might see hanging around a booth or up on the stage at Music City are all highlighted in the Fall issue of the book. We hope you find it gives you a little more behind the scenes context to various pieces of the conference.

It wouldn’t hurt my feelings to see you carrying it around with you at the conference. But no pressure.

By the way, in our Spotlight feature this time, we take a stab at showing off for the first time, all of the cars being made in the Southern region. Let us know if we missed any. Of course, the roster is changing all the time as new OEMS come on line, as new products are developed, as venerable badges are retired.

But that’s just the way it is in the automotive business – it never stops moving.

Thanks for reading.

By the way, if you’re getting this magazine, why not subscribe? It’s easy and just as free as the magazine itself. Just visit our website, www.southernautomotivealliance.com and click on one of the easy subscription buttons or popups. Drop me a line and let me know how well that worked – or tell me what you think about the magazine and what we ought to be writing about, at npatterson@pmtpublishing.com.

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PUBLISHER: Walker Sorrell EDITOR: Nicholas Patterson npatterson@pmtpublishing.com ART DIRECTOR: Rebecca Reeves WEB PRODUCER: Abby Parrott COPY EDITOR : Christine Gordon CONTRIBUTORS Contributors: Dave Helms, Cara D. Clark, Bill Gerdes, Nancy Henderson, Carla Caldwell, Lawrence Elizabeth Knox, Michelle Love, Megan Boyle, Dallus Whitfield, Ben Chase, Lynsey Weatherspoon, Christine Prichard ADMINISTRATION: Molly Lipski Powell CIRCULATION: Anita Miller ACCOUNTING: Keith Crabtree ADVERTISING SALES: Chandler Busby 205-802-6363 Ext. 103 cbusby@pmtpublishing.com INTEGRATED MEDIA & EVENTS Sheila Wardy swardy@pmtpublishing.com 3324 Independence Dr Birmingham, AL 35209 (205) 802-6363 southernautomotivealliance.com T.J. Potts, President PMT Publishing, Inc. 3729 Cottage Hill Rd H • Mobile, AL 36609 pmtpublishing.com • 251.473.6269 Southern Automotive Alliance is published quarterly by PMT Publishing Inc. Copyright 2019 by PMT Publishing Inc. All rights reserved.

Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission prohibited.

Address all correspondence to Southern Automotive Alliance, 3729 Cottage Hill Road, Suite H, Mobile, AL 36609 or 3324 Independence Dr Birmingham, AL 35209. Phone (251) 473-6269 in Mobile or (205) 802-6363 in Birmingham.

FAX in Birmingham is (205) 802-6393 and e-mail address is info@pmtpublishing.com.

Letters to the editor are welcome or e-mail to npatterson@pmtpublishing.com. Please query the editor before sending unsolicited articles or photographs.

Moving? Please note US Postal Service will not forward magazines mailed through their Bulk Mail unit. Please send old label along with your new address 4-6 weeks prior to moving.

FALL 2019 | Southern Automotive Alliance 11

TEXT BY: DAVE HELMS

Industry Benchmarks

On-The-Job Training Is Long Gone, Says Kentucky’s Lex Taylor

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he days of workers being trained once they’ve already donned their hard hats and steel-toed boots are long gone, according to Lex Taylor, chairman of the board of Kentucky-based Taylor Group of Companies Inc. Taylor, speaking at a workforce-training event in Louisville, told his audience that skills training should begin in the 8th grade. Those hiring for the rapid growth of automotive employers in the South would no doubt agree. Factory hiring managers often are heard saying that they need new employees who can hit the production ground running.

The event was to acknowledge an ARC EMPower Initiative Grant aimed at helping retrain workers displaced by the closing of coal mines, particularly in Kentucky and Mississippi. East Mississippi Community College, for example, will use the funding to expand its welding program.

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HONDA’S $12B PUNCH Honda Manufacturing of Alabama contributed more than $12 billion in 2018 to the state’s economy and, along with its suppliers, was responsible for more than 45,647 jobs in Alabama, according to an economic impact study released in August.

CAMERAS FOR MIRRORS The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will

soon study “driving behavior and lane change maneuver execution” as part of an effort to determine whether it’s a good idea to replace traditional mirrors in automobiles with cameras.

PRACTICE ON THIS Toyota Alabama is expanding its engine plant and partnering on a new assembly plant in Huntsville, Alabama, so the company recently gave $200,000

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POWER (Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization) is a congressionally funded initiative that targets federal resources to help communities and regions that have been affected by job losses in coal mining, coal power plant operations, and coal-related supply chain industries due to the changing economics of America’s energy production.

In 2019, ARC announced 36 POWER investments, totaling $26.2 million. These investments are projected to create or retain over 1,100 jobs, benefit over 5,200 students and workers, and leverage more than $22.8 million in private investment into manufacturing, agriculture, technology, substance abuse recovery, broadband development, and other industry sectors across coal-impacted communities in nine Appalachian states. n

in new cars and engines to J.F. Drake State Community and Technical College. Students will get hands-on technical training thanks to the donation.

TRUMP TUNED OUT U.S. President Donald Trump took exception in late summer that automakers ignored him in cutting a deal with California for stricter fuel economy standards.

The administration plans to challenge the deal in court.

BUT BORING CAN BE GOOD Business media outlet CNBC recently described Toyota as the biggest automaker nobody notices. Its cars are conservative, famously reliable and always sensible. While those are all good things, the company must now try to shed some predictability, CNBC suggested.

GLOBAL TRADE BOOST The Alabama Department of Commerce reported recently

Feds Raid UAW President’s Detroit Home, Seize Cash And Records

ATN Hoelzel $6M Upgrade To Create 100 New Tennessee Jobs

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he United Auto Workers union has tried for years, without much success, to break into the South’s burgeoning post-Detroit automaking sphere.

It was turned back most recently earlier this summer, when workers at the Volkswagen plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, voted down a move to unionize the plant.

Volkswagen, which has union-represented workers at many of its other assembly plants around the world, including Germany, conducted a spirited campaign before June’s election to convince workers they didn’t need outside representation. Part of their argument cited the UAW’s problems with corrupt leaders in the past.

That theme may well have been playing out again recently at auto plants around the South, as word came from Detroit about a federal raid August 28 at six locations in four states, including the suburban Detroit home of United Auto Workers President Gary Jones and the California residence of former President Dennis Williams.

Agents from the FBI, IRS and Labor Department have been investigating alleged bribes, kickbacks and attempts by auto executives to influence UAW labor negotiations. The raids netted files and “wads” of cash, according to investigators.

They also drew concern from those who noted that Big Four negotiations with the UAW are currently underway. The investigation has elements of civil racketeering law, commonly used against organized crime figures.

“We are very much in uncharted territory,” Kristin Dziczek, vice president of industry, labor and economics at the nonprofit Center for Automotive Research, told the Detroit News. n

that the state has already received promises of 3,300 new jobs from foreign direct investment in the state.

Thus far in 2019, Alabama has seen nearly $1 billion in such investments, many from foreign automakers and supply interests.

TENSION ON THE LINE Making vehicles can require people to be in close contact.

Thus a report raised concern in

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TN Hoelzel LP officials announced in early August that the company will expand its operations in Chattanooga, Tennessee with a $6 million investment expected to create 100 jobs in Hamilton County.

A subsidiary of German-based ATN Hoelzel GmbH, ATN is a leading supplier and system integrator of the automotive industry focused on fully automated and robot guided gluing equipment.

ATN plans to relocate its current Hamilton County facility to an existing 55,000-square-foot facility in Chattanooga. The company will retrofit the existing space to include 15,000 square feet of office space as well as other upgrades at the facility. The new operations will function as the company’s North American headquarters and manufacturing facility.

“ATN is thrilled to announce our newly expanded manufacturing facility in Chattanooga,” said ATN Hoelzel COO Thomas Brandler.

“The U.S. manufacturing facility has become our second largest plant worldwide and perfectly complements our German Production and Services offered at the headquarters in Saxony, Germany.”

Since 2015, the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development (TNECD) has supported 41 projects in Hamilton County, resulting in the creation of more than 6,000 new jobs and approximately $1.5 billion in capital investment.

“There are more than 1,000 foreign-based companies in Tennessee, and I am proud that German-based ATN has chosen to expand and locate its North American headquarters in Chattanooga,” said Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee. “I appreciate ATN for creating 100 new jobs in Hamilton County and wish them future success.” n

August when fashion company Tommy John released a survey suggesting that 45 percent of people wear their underwear for two days or more. A terrifying 13 percent wore the same pair for a week or more.

AIRBAGS PROMPT 191K RECALL Toyota in late August announced a 191,000-car recall in the United States and Japan to fix defective Takata-brand airbags that may pose a safety

hazard of their own in a crash.

The recall affects certain 2003 to 2008 Corolla models, and 2005 to 2008 Matrix models.

GM, FORD MAY KNOW SOMETHING Ford and General Motors are taking steps to prepare for a possible economic downturn, according to global news source Reuters. Both companies cited the ongoing trade war as the possible fuse

on a global recession.

A BETTER EYE ON 3D PRINTING The National Center for Additive Manufacturing Excellence at Auburn University recently acquired a $1.5 million X-ray CT system to do nondestructive testing of 3D printed parts. Auburn is a leading force in creating industrial processes for 3D printing.

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BE N C HM A R K S

Work Commencing On Motus Plant In Alabama

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mployers that pay an average wage of more than $20 an hour are always welcome in Alabama’s mid-sized cities, so local officials in Gadsden were happy to join with Etowah County and state officials recently to welcome Motus Integrated Technologies.

Motus, a Tier 1 supplier of automotive interior products, has begun work on a $15 million facility expected to create 90 permanent jobs. The ceremonial groundbreaking was held July 30 at The Venue, an event-hosting facility on the banks of the Coosa River.

Scheduled to be open by the middle of 2020, the plant is being constructed near Gadsden’s Airport Industrial Park.

The company is a leading provider of headliners, automotive interior door and console armrests. Globally, it employs more then 2,000 workers at five facilities.

Working closely with the state of Alabama and local leaders, Motus conducted an extensive search for its new plant location before deciding to build in Gadsden.

The site is close to a heavy concentration of automotive manufacturing facilities within the region, including several current and potential customers.

“It’s all about the people here,” says Kevin Kernan, chief operating officer for Motus. Engineering Manager Brent Turner echoed this sentiment. “Why not choose Gadsden? It’s

Kevin Kernan, chief operating officer of Motus Integrated Technologies, delivers remarks at his firm’s announcement on July 30 in Gadsden, Alabama. (Governor’s Office, Sydney A. Foster)

in a great location, great community, great people to work with, so we’re excited to be here.”

In 2018 alone, automakers announced new Alabama projects involving nearly $3.3 billion in capital investment and almost 5,500 anticipated jobs.

“This is a great day for Gadsden, and we are proud to be able to recruit high-paying jobs and welcome an innovative company like Motus to our community and our state,” Gadsden Mayor Sherman Guyton says. n

Jim Dunne, Father Of Industry Spy Photography, Dies At 87

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man carrying a clipboard, with the right authoritative air, can short circuit even the most carefully laid corporate security arrangements.

Jim Dunne, who died at his home in Grosse Pointe Park, Michigan, on Aug. 19 at the age of 87, apparently proved this theorem again and again over the years. As one story goes, he used this method to get past security at one automotive design facility, with a camera body concealed on his person, while the lens for the camera was concealed by a companion. They

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BUYING FROM PEOPLE PREFERRED A study by Urban Science in conjunction with Harris Poll, questioning 2,000 shoppers and 200 dealers earlier this year, concluded that a vast majority prefers to buy a new vehicle from a dealership. Young buyers don’t appear to be changing that preference.

combined Mazda-Toyota plant last year, but the South Alabama Mega Site in Baldwin County could easily win the next such competition. The Mega Site, bordered by Interstate 65 on the north, Highway 287 to the west and the CSX Railroad to the south, is getting $5 million in site enhancements from local sources.

READY FOR A CAR PLANT It came up short for the

EXPANDING APPRENTICESHIPS Josh Laney has been

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apparently praised the guard for challenging them and said he should keep a sharp eye out for trespassers.

Dunne graduated from Catholic Central High School in Detroit, and received a bachelor’s degree in Industrial Management from the University of Detroit. He served in the United States Army during the Korean War. After working at several jobs, according to his obituary, he discovered automotive journalism and worked at it for 45 years, only going into semi-retirement at 77. n

named director of the newly established Alabama Office of Apprenticeship.

Laney previously served as senior director of workforce development for the Alabama Department of Education.

DUE FOR GAS HIKE? President Donald Trump’s plan to freeze U.S. vehicle efficiency standards could have the consequence of raising gasoline prices for motorists,

according to Consumer Reports.

The administration has worked to reverse Obama-era efficiency requirements.

SOUTH’S NEW TAILGATING OPTION Tesla tends to follow a pattern when naming their models.

Thus their electric pickup truck, still on the drawing board and said to have a $50,000 price tag, might be called the Model T, except Ford’s already done that.

It’s Hard To Beat Those Mazda-Toyota Tweets

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witter’s highestprofile user may live in Washington, D.C., but in Alabama one of the liveliest strings of tweets you’ll find is @ Mazda_Toyota, which recently gave followers an aerial tour of the construction site.

The drone footage captures the massive scale of the project, with 3.1 million square feet under its roof, a space that could accommodate 65 football fields. Seventy percent of the 2,500 construction workers are from Alabama and they’ve now installed 70 percent of the roof, according to the Twitter update.

Steel placement is 90 percent complete and it’s a lot of steel. We’re talking 1,600 steel beams. If stacked upright, that would stretch 80,000 feet into space, or approximately 15 miles, more than double the altitude of commercial aircraft. That 26,000 tons of total steel, equal to 52,000,000 lbs., would amount to 10,400,000 average sized red bricks.

It was on Twitter that most people learned Toyota had shifted its plan of building Corollas at the new plant, instead emphasizing a new, “as yet-unnamed SUV.” Fans of the account also know that the Mazda-Toyota folks meets every Monday for a team meeting, to foster collaboration across the various cross-sections of the effort. Another update noted that the Limestone County construction project aims to achieve at least 20 percent total diversity spending with certified minority and women-owned enterprises (MBE/WBE) on plant construction.

There’s even some good-natured crowing. “Construction of our 3.1 million sq. ft. plant is the largest industrial project in AL and among the top 10 industrial projects in the U.S.,” the Twitter feed noted in July.

And, throughout all those social media posts, there are consistent invitations to “join the Mazda-Toyota team,” complete with links to job applications and hiring information.

Construction of MTMUS remains on schedule, with the start of production expected to begin in 2021. Up to 4,000 new jobs will be created and hiring is underway. n

Some speculate that the pickup will be called the Model B. HYUNDAI’S HOT SUVS South Korean automaker Hyundai saw a 12 percent yearover-year increase in sales in July, its 12th consecutive month of accelerating total sales on a comparative monthly basis. Leading the pack was the Alabama-made Santa Fe, up 46 percent.

PLANT GETS ITS NEW BRIDGE A federal grant of $4.1 million from the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration will help build a new bridge near the Mazda-Toyota plant under construction in Huntsville.

The money will help spur 320 jobs and $128 million in private investments.

THIEVES DON’T WANT YOUR EV It’s hurtful, but a new study

Canadian Automotive Supplier Plans Layoffs In Kentucky

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anadian automotive supplier Martinrea International Inc. plans to lay off nearly 200 employees at its stamping facility in Shelbyville, Kentucky, according to Automotive News.

The affected employees would represent about a quarter of the factory’s work force. The trade publication quoted company officials as saying the cutbacks were because a new model of the Ford Escape would not require as much labor force as the previous model. Ford plans a complete redesign of its popular Escape model for 2020. The company had no comment on the layoffs.

Martinrea produces steel and aluminum body, chassis and engine parts, as well as parts and assemblies for fluid handling. Its workers in Kentucky are represented by UAW Local 2383. The company ranks 78th on the Automotive News top 100 global suppliers, with sales of $2.7 billion last year. n

from the Highway Loss Data Institute suggests car thieves want powerful cars the like Ford Mustang and Dodge Charger, or even muscle-bound pickups, but tend to ignore electric vehicles, which are among the least stolen vehicles in the country.

purchase J.D. Power and Associates, the data analytics and consumer intelligence firm that services the auto industry.

Equity firm Thoma Bravo, with offices in San Francisco and Chicago, expects the transaction to close by late 2019.

J.D. POWER ACQUIRED A U.S. private equity firm that recently bought Autodata Solutions Group has now reached an agreement to

MORE STEEL ON THE WAY Italian-based die-casting company 2A USA, plans a $15 million project to expand its foundry in Auburn, Alabama.

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BE N C H M A R KS

CRP Industries Investing $2.5M In South Carolina Operation

South’s German Automakers Most Susceptible To China Tariffs

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utomotive part manufacturer CRP Industries Inc. will invest $2.5 million to establish operations in Conway, South Carolina, according to Area Development. The newly constructed, 50,000-square-foot facility in Horry County, will be at 3084 Bashor Road.

It’s expected to create 115 jobs over the next five years.

The initial plan is for the plant to manufacture advanced electric power steering systems for the aftermarket under the CRP brand of AAE. The facility is expected to be in operation by mid-September.

“After completing extensive due diligence on several potential new locations for our expanded operations, we chose Conway and Horry County because of their workforce, their focus on supporting new businesses as demonstrated by strong financial and administrative assistance to our project and the technical partnership offered by HorryGeorgetown Technical College,” CRP Industries CEO Dan Schildge told Area Development.

“We are excited to begin this new chapter in the growth of CRP Industries Inc. with the state of South Carolina, Horry County and the city of Conway as our partners.”

South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster said that”Whenever a new company decides to invest within our borders, it marks the beginning of a partnership that we know will benefit South Carolinians for a long time. I look forward to watching CRP Industries Inc. thrive in the state and make a positive impact in Horry County and beyond.” n

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he South’s German automakers stand to lose the most if President Donald Trump’s trade war with China continues to ramp up with everincreasing tariffs.

That’s the conclusion reached by Autoblog reporter Gary S. Vasilash, who wrote a piece in late August headlined, “How tariffs in China could cause a meltdown in the American South.”

Vasilash notes that BMW, the largest automotive exporter by value for the fifth year running in 2018, based in Spartanburg, South Carolina, is first on the hit list created by a trade war with China. Second would be MercedesBenz U.S. International, based in Vance, Alabama. SUVs account “for more than a third of all Mercedes-Benz sales,” according to company officials.

Both companies have found an enthusiastic customer base for their luxury SUVs and crossovers in China. Thus word from the Chinese finance ministry that the country will impose a 25 percent tariff on automobiles and a 5 percent tariff on auto parts, starting Dec. 15, sounds a lot like a downturn.

GM and Ford won’t escape unscathed either, the writer notes, as both have tried to make sales inroads in China with manufacturing partners.

As with all things involving Trump, it remains to be seen what actually plays out. Here’s hoping the strength of billions in investments in the South’s automaking infrastructure aren’t for naught. n

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The move will create 50 jobs and double the Tier 1 supplier’s foundry area.

STAYING DIVERSIFIED Mazda Toyota Manufacturing USA says it’s aiming for at least 20 percent diversity as it spends on construction in Huntsville for its newly combined $1.6 billion assembly plant. The company uses certified minority and women-owned businesses.

DAIMLER DEALS WITH TAKATA Luxury carmaker Daimler reduced its sales outlook for Mercedes-Benz vehicles this past summer, noting that dealing with Takata airbags and diesel-related problems had triggered a 1.56 billion euros ($1.74 billion) loss before taxes and interest in its second quarter.

FORD’S SHOW OF FORCE Pickup truck fanciers seldom

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call themselves fanciers. They are typically not the market for non-alcohol beer. And when they hit the gas, they want results. Ford knows this and recently arranged a torque demonstration where an electric F-150 prototype towed 10 double-decker rail cars stuffed with 42 current-model F-150s, weighing over a million pounds (500 tons) in total.

AN AIRBAG YOU’LL LIKE German supplier ZF is working on a new kind of airbag that deploys from the side of a vehicle before collision impact.

ZF says it can reduce the severity of occupant injuries 40 percent and could be on a production model in four years.

NEW VETTE VETTED General Motors President Mark Reuss recently announced that the redesigned 2020

Hyundai Expands Rear-Seat Occupant Alert System

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yundai Motor America has announced plans to expand use of its safety system that reminds drivers when someone is in the back seat — a system designed to prevent harm to children accidentally left in hot cars.

“Making these systems standard equipment will help prevent child deaths from heatstroke in vehicles,” the company

noted in a press release, adding that it plans to make the system standard on most new vehicles by 2022. It’s already standard in the Santa Fe and Palisade.

The announcement came July 31, which is National Heatstroke Day. More than half of the Hyundai vehicles sold in the U.S. are built at Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama in Montgomery, including the popular Santa Fe. “Heatstroke in vehicles is preventable and we are doing our part to prevent this,” said Mike O’Brien, a vice president of Hyundai Motor America. “We have great systems that use both door logic memory and motion sensors to help prevent children and pets from being forgotten in the car, but it also helps in case children accidentally lock themselves in.”

Hyundai has developed two systems to prevent danger to children and pets left behind. One sends a message via the dashboard instrument cluster; the other — if it detects movement after the driver leaves the car and locks the doors — honks the horn and sends an alert to the driver’s smartphone. n

Capstone Structures Complex Deal For Three Tier 1 Suppliers

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nternational auto industry advisor Capstone Financial Group and its investment banking subsidiary Mobility Securities recently completed a transaction in which Adell Group Inc. acquired three vertically integrated manufacturers and distributors of trim products sold to auto manufacturers through the Original Equipment Service channel.

Adell Group is a Texas-based automotive OEM supplier and portfolio company of Kinderhook Industries. The transaction demonstrates the growing importance of consolidation in the auto supplier sector.

“Vertical integration and auto supplier consolidation is inevitable and growing,” says Capstone CEO Dan Smith. “All companies need scale and negotiating power, and the best path for many is vertical integration. We will see more deals involving multiple parties, particularly now that auto sales

Chevrolet Corvette Stingray will still start at less than $60,000 while delivering the model’s dependably powerful performance and stylish appearance.

FILL UP THE TANK Mercedes-Benz’s expansion into Bibb County, Alabama has earned it three grants thus far worth about $2 million in assistance. The Appalachian Regional Commission recently

approved $643,840 to construct a 300,000-gallon water tank for use near Mercedes’ electric battery plant under construction in Woodstock.

LEAR LOWERS OUTLOOK Michigan-based seating and electronics manufacturer Lear Corp. revised its second quarter earnings outlook due to global economic decline, it said recently. The full-year outlook was originally $21.7 billion in

have declined.”

The deal involved three suppliers in two countries. It included two asset sales, a stock sale, two currencies, financial statements and documents in two languages, two sets of Canadian provincial laws, and four taxing jurisdictions.

Capstone had five personnel on the deal team, including Carl Norman, the firm’s managing director.

The sellers were three separate entities: Powerflow Inc., of Buffalo, New York; Powerflow Products Ltd., of Toronto; and Solutions Plastik Inc., of Magog, Quebec. Capstone provided independent, in-depth financial analysis, and accounting functions for the three entities in preparation for the deal.

Capstone, based in San Jose, California has provided guidance to the automotive industry since 1990, with a recent focus on auto tech. n

revenue but now looks to be between $19.8 billion and $20.3 billion.

HYUNDAI’S HOT ENGINE Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama will be in the global forefront for producing a new engine the company recently developed. The variable valve duration (CVVD) engine was shown off in South Korea alongside the Smartstream G1.6 T-GDi engine that will feature

the new technology.

STEEL’S ON THE GROUND Steel framing arrived recently at the future Toyota Boshoku manufacturing facility in Athens, Alabama where work is set to wrap up by mid2020, according to company officials. Birmingham-based Gray Construction is the lead contractor on the auto supply project.

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B E N C HM A R K S

First Announced Mazda Toyota Supplier Breaks Ground In Alabama

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xecutives of DaikyoNishikawa US (DNUS) and local leaders gathered Aug. 22 for a groundbreaking event in Huntsville to launch construction on the auto supplier’s $110 million manufacturing plant in north Alabama.

DNUS will employ about 380 workers upon full production, making plastic automotive parts for the Mazda Toyota Manufacturing USA (MTMUS) assembly plant.

DNUS was the first supplier to announce plans to locate a facility on the site of the Mazda Toyota joint venture assembly plant, making its announcement in May. “As our first manufacturing facility in North America, DNUS is proud to serve Mazda Toyota and call Huntsville our new home,” Nariaki Uchida, president of DaikyoNishikawa Corporation, said at the groundbreaking.

“Together with our business and community partners, our aim is to be a good corporate neighbor and a premiere Tier I automotive supplier.”

Meanwhile, construction on the 3.1 million-square-foot MTMUS facility is well under way, with as many as 2,500 construction workers expected on the Limestone County site this summer. The auto assembly plant represents $1.6 billion

Nariaki Uchida, president of DaikyoNishikawa Corp., welcomes guests Aug. 22 at the company’s groundbreaking ceremony in Huntsville, Alabama. (Governor’s Office/Hal Yeager)

investment that will employ up to 4,000 people.

“By selecting Alabama as the site for its first U.S. manufacturing facility, DaikyoNishikawa joins a long list of world-class Japanese companies with growing operations in the state,” said Greg Canfield, secretary of the Alabama Department of Commerce. n

As Promised, Volvo Gets Its Interchange In South Carolina

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n South Carolina, the opening for a new interchange on Interstate 26 related to the Volvo Cars plant in Berkeley County is cause for celebration at the highest levels.

That’s exactly what they got in Ridgeville, where Gov. Henry McMaster was on the list of VIPs Aug. 29 to cut

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German Minister for Economic and Energy Affairs Peter Altmaier visited automotive sites around the deep South this summer, including Mercedes-Benz in Alabama, to show support for the country’s considerable automotive investment in the U.S.

GERHARDI OPEN FOR BUSINESS German auto supplier Gerhardi Inc. has opened its new $41.6 million manufacturing plant

in Montgomery, its first such facility in the U.S. The facility will employ 235 workers at full production, making interior and exterior automotive parts with molding and electroplating processes.

A LACK OF FOCUS? Ford Motor Co. launched its popular Focus and Fiesta models despite knowing that they would have defective transmissions, a Detroit Free Press investigation

18 | Southern Automotive Alliance | FALL 2019

the ribbon for the new interchange 20 miles northwest of Charleston. The infrastructure was promised as part of the incentive package used to lure the Swedish automaker to make its U.S. home in the state.

The plant, which makes the sporty S60 sedan, now employs 1,500 workers and will begin assembling the XC90 SUV in 2022.

Volvo plans to construct a central campus with research center just off the I-26 interchange by the end of the year.

Zhejiang Geely Holding (Geely Holding) of China acquired Volvo Car Group (Volvo Cars) in 2010. As of December 2017, Volvo Cars had around 38,000 full-time employees around the globe. n

recently concluded. The cars hit the market in 2010-11 and have generated complaints for randomly losing power.

SLIGHT DELAY WITH SWITCH The new Mazda-Toyota plant in Huntsville will see some delays in production on the Toyota side because of a decision to change from making Corollas to a new model of SUV. Given the hot sales of SUVs, though, the wait should be worth it.

STEEL INDUSTRY BACKFIRE Bloomberg recently concluded that President Donald Trump’s tariffs on foreign steel actually quickened the decline of some of the U.S. mills he vowed to help. Tariffs boosted U.S. production just as the global economy cooled, dropping prices and hurting both Nucor Corp and U.S. Steel, both with plants in Alabama.

Japan-Based Supplier Vuteq Setting Up Shop In Alabama

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apan-based automotive supplier Vuteq, which has manufacturing plants in Indiana, Texas and Mississippi, announced Aug. 21 that it would build a $60 million facility to serve Mazda Toyota Manufacturing USA in Huntsville.

Gov. Kay Ivey, who joined in the announcement, said the plant will create 200 jobs. Vuteq has operated in North America for over three decades and joins a growing list of Tier 1 suppliers setting up shop around the Rocket City.

Vuteq USA will produce interior and exterior plastic-injected parts and various sub-assemblies for Mazda and Toyota at their shared Alabama assembly plant, now under construction on a 2,500-acre tract in the Limestone County portion of Huntsville.

“Vuteq has established a large industrial footprint in the United States, and it’s great to see the company expand that presence to our state.” Gov. Ivey said.

Construction work at Vuteq’s site at 7306 Greenbriar Parkway Northwest, just outside the MTMUS campus, is scheduled to begin in October.

Construction work is expected to be complete in September 2020, followed by initial production trials of equipment, molds and secondary systems. A production launch is targeted for 2021.

“Vuteq USA Inc. is very pleased and excited to be opening our next plant in Alabama,” Kazumasa Watanabe, president of Vuteq USA, said in a press release. “Our company is thankful for the support provided by the city of Huntsville and state of Alabama as we begin a new chapter.”

The Mazda-Toyota partnership is investing $1.6 billion to build and equip its Huntsville assembly plant, which will have up to 4,000 workers producing up to 300,000 vehicles annually. Construction on the facility began earlier this year and vehicle production is expected in 2021. n

HONDA SO AMERICAN Four Alabama-made vehicles have been named in the top 10 of the 2019 AmericanMade Index, Cars.com’s list of models that contribute the most to the U.S. economy. The Alabama-built models included the Odyssey minivan at No. 2, followed by the Ridgeline pickup at No. 3, the Passport SUV at No. 4 and the Pilot SUV at No. 7.

MEXICO TARIFFS DODGED Southeast Consul General Javier Diaz visited Huntsville, Alabama and other Southern cities to calm concerns about tariffs and trade issues. Tariffs are “off the table,” and Mexico wants to move forward, he told auto executives.

START SAVING NOW The 2020 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 will go for $73,995 in its most basic form and offer an amazing 760 horsepower,

Nissan Says Job Cuts In Mississippi, Tennessee Already Done

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issan North America said in July that a global plan to cut production by 10 percent and eliminate 12,500 jobs worldwide and 1,400 jobs in North America has already had its impact at company factories in Tennessee and Mississippi.

The company has trimmed workers at the two plants by offering voluntary buyouts and reducing the number of contract employees.

Company officials said the staffing level at its North American headquarters should remain level as well.

Nissan operates an engine plant in Decherd, Tennessee, as well as assembly plants in Canton, Mississippi.

Along with cutting jobs, Nissan recently announced it would streamline its truck offerings. Regular cab versions of the Titan and Titan XD will no longer be offered in 2020, and it is also eliminating the Cummins diesel engine option. The Nissan Frontier will be updated for 2020 and feature a new V-6 engine.

Profit took a nosedive in the first half of the year, with analysts blaming the U.S.-China trade tensions, drama involving alleged financial misconduct by former Chairman Carlos Gordch, and uncertainty over Brexit. n

according to the Blue Oval. If you want the Carbon Fiber Track package, though, that will take you past $90,000.

IT’S A WORTHY GOAL While the Mercedes-Benz GLC is currently assembled in Bremen, Germany, Car Buzz recently contemplated that it would be cool if the Mercedes plant in Alabama could start producing that super-luxury model.

Currently the Tuscaloosa plant

builds the GLE and GLS. DON’T CHASE CAR THIEVES A couple in New Haven, Connecticut reportedly used a tracking app to try and recover their stolen Tesla, according to Electrek. While there was a difference in how the events unfolded, no one was hurt and police emphasize that it’s a bad idea to confront car thieves, even if an app gives you that opportunity.

FALL 2019 | Southern Automotive Alliance 19

EXECUTIVE Q&A INTERVIEW BY: NANCY HENDERSON // PHOTOS COURTESY OF DALLUS WHITFIELD

Automotive attorney Lynda Hill talks about legal issues facing the industry

Supporting the Suppliers

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hen Lynda Hill started practicing law in Chattanooga in 1998, she had no idea that her experience representing general manufacturers would someday lead her to primarily concentrate on helping automotive OEMs and tier suppliers.

Hill, who joined Nashville’s Frost Brown Todd in 2012, now chairs the firm’s Automotive Industry Team, made up of 40 industry-specific attorneys,

20 | Southern Automotive Alliance | FALL 2019

plus another 20 from supporting practices such as environmental and employment. She also recently joined the board of directors of TAMA - the Tennessee Automotive Manufacturers Association.

In recent years, Hill has successfully defended a component part maker of underground fuel distribution systems against allegations of environmental contamination, represented Tier 1 suppliers in contract litigation related to counterfeit automotive products, and served as lead counsel for clients

threatened by major supply chain disruptions, among others.

This year, Frost Brown Todd is the premiere sponsor of the Southern Automotive Conference in Nashville.

Q: Was there a learning curve when you started focusing on automotive law, or was this already an area of expertise?

LH: It was a learning curve. Obviously, automotive manufacturing is a subset of the larger general manufacturing universe, but it’s very unique. It’s kind

It helps to be passionate about the industry. If you care about it, then you’re going to be better at it. There are a lot of attorneys who have skillsets that would translate into the automotive arena, but if it’s not something that you’re interested in, I think it makes it difficult to excel at it and to make it a preeminent area of practice. of a delicate ecosystem because of the just-in-time supply system. It’s a little more sensitive to disruption, but it’s also the thing that makes it flow really well.

The language of automotive is different than a lot of general manufacturing. Frost had a strong automotive practice when I joined, and I was able to immerse myself in it and learn the terminology, learn how the industry worked, and slowly start developing a practice in that area.

Q: What skillset does an automotive attorney need to have?

LH: It helps to be passionate about the industry. If you care about it, then you’re going to be better at it. There are a lot of attorneys who have skillsets that would translate into the automotive arena, but if it’s not something that you’re interested in, I think it makes it difficult to excel at it and to make it a preeminent area of practice.

The other thing is you have to have attention to detail, but also a commitment to get the work done when it needs to be done. The automotive industry never sleeps.

There are transactions going on globally all the time. You may need to be working on something at 11 at night. You may have to take a phone call to Japan in the middle of the night.

So, you’ve got to be willing to be as dedicated to the needs of the industry as the individuals who are working in the industry.

out of the recession, so we saw remarkable growth and recovery in the automotive industry. The recession was incredibly hard on the automotive industry but we saw significant growth [afterward] and we are now leveling off and even starting to see some decline in sales, which basically creates uncertainty in the industry. There is also a lot of uncertainty around trade issues as it relates to tariffs and trade agreements. That type of uncertainty can cause some anxiety in the market and the industry.

At the same time, that’s kind of a short-term concern. I think longterm, the industry is plowing forward with technological advances, trying to move toward more automation and expansion of electric vehicle platforms.

So I think there’s a long-term belief that the industry’s going to be fine and recover and advance and evolve.

Q: How do you spend most of your time at the firm?

LH: It’s never boring. The types of work that I do may involve helping the client in a distressed supplier situation, which can be created by any number of things. The supplier’s financial situation may be poor. It could be a natural disaster, a hurricane for example. And because of the just-intime system, disruptions in shipping and production can cause a whiplash effect and ultimately stop production at an assembly plant or OEM. So one of the things I may do in any given week is to help clients work to support the suppliers or to resource their supply to someone else if that’s possible … until they get back on their feet. Or maybe they have to file bankruptcy. I don’t get involved in the bankruptcy piece so much, but I will help if the supplier is winding down and going out of business.

Also, I am involved in litigation. My first 14 years of practice were exclusively dedicated to general business litigation, and I went back to school in 2013 and in 2015 finished my MBA at Vanderbilt to help me better understand the operational aspects of automotive.

Frost Brown Todd in Nashville

Q: What types of legal issues do auto companies face right now, and how are those different from when you started specializing in this field?

LH: When I started, we were coming FALL 2019 | Southern Automotive Alliance 21

E X E C U TI V E

Q& A

We also believe that the best way to help the firm is to support the industry because if the industry thrives, then we will thrive.

Q: What do you consider your most interesting automotive case so far?

LH: I really can’t identify any one particular matter, but I can tell you that any time we can help an OEM or supplier maintain production, that’s a success. When there’s a threat to production, that’s potentially millions and millions of dollars in damages to them. They have a labor force they have to be concerned with. They have their own contracts they have to satisfy.

So helping clients be able to work through that is very rewarding. It’s also very challenging, because it’s usually a situation in crisis mode and, as a result, you sort of work hot and fast and handin-hand with the client in order to help them get through those issues.

Q: You are also a Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 31 Listed General Civil Mediator. How often

22 | Southern Automotive Alliance | FALL 2019

does mediation come into play in your practice?

LH: I have not mediated any matters in the automotive space, but the training I had is often very helpful in trying to negotiate on behalf of my client, understanding how to read certain situations and how to try to reach consensus. I think it’s a very important tool to have in your toolbox.

Q: You serve on the board of the Southern Automotive Women’s Forum. Why, and what are your goals?

LH: The Southern Automotive Women’s Forum gives me an opportunity to be involved in something in which I’m personally interested: the advancement of women, and in particular the advancement of women in automotive. I also have the good fortune of it tying into my

industry and what I do for a living.

That nexus is sometimes hard to find. I get to work with some fantastic women who work directly in the industry.

We work with middle school girls to introduce them to the STEM field and careers in automotive. We raise money for scholarships for young women who are pursuing STEM careers, with an automotive twist in college. And we also provide special development training for those women who are already in automotive who want to succeed and advance. It’s just a great way to scratch my philanthropic itch.

Q: Why did your firm decide to sponsor the 2019 Southern Automotive Conference?

A: It’s part of our strategic plan and commitment to support the industries in which we work and to become preeminent in our service areas within those industries. We also believe that the best way to help the firm is to support the industry because if the industry thrives, then we will thrive. n

FALL 2019 | Southern Automotive Alliance 23

EXECUTIVE Q&A INTERVIEW BY: NICK PATTERSON // PHOTOS BY: CHRISTINE PRICHARD/PRESIDENT’S VIDEO IMAGES BY ONIN

On A Mission

Toyota’s Jeneen Horton sees Southern Automotive Women’s Forum as a way to give back to an industry she loves

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eneen Horton is a fixture at automotive conferences, representing Toyota Motor Manufacturing Alabama as its manager for Environmental and Facilities Departments. A key player in the company’s efforts to reduce CO2, Horton challenged the company to achieve “zero landfill” status, and TMMAL was the first of Toyota’s North American manufacturing plants to get there.

Besides her active role at the plant, however, Horton, who has served

24 | Southern Automotive Alliance | FALL 2019

on the board of the Association of Energy Engineers, and the advisory committee for Auburn University’s Mechanical Engineering department, is committed to giving back to nonprofits such as Girls Inc., and the Southern Automotive Women’s Forum (SAWF), which recently elected her president.

Ahead of this year’s Southern Automotive Conference, she talked about how she got into automotive, why conferences are important and what she hopes to see SAWF accomplish.

She even manages to work a Toyota slogan in at the end.

Q: How did you get interested in the automotive field in the first place?

Was it a lifelong goal?

Jeneen Horton: It has always been a lifelong goal to be an engineer. It was in the cards for me to end up in the automotive sector. My co-op experience was actually in power generation. I worked at a power plant.

After graduation I started working at an electrical cable company, then a Tier I automotive supplier. I knew after graduation I would work in the environmental sector within a manufacturing company.

At an AAMA environmental conference in 2018, Horton talked about Toyota’s efforts to work responsibly within the ecosystems around their facilities.

Q: How did you come to be at Toyota?

JH: Toyota starting building a facility in Huntsville, Alabama, literally 10 minutes from my home. I was passing by the plant one day while it was under construction early 2001, and I said to myself I will work there one day. I started June 2002 as an environmental engineer and have loved the automotive industry since that time.

Q: What’s your day to day like at Toyota ?

JH: I can sum that up in this word… unpredictable. No day is the same, but every day I know my job is to problem solve and develop my team members. The day is driven by our KPIs (Key Performance Indicators), so any of the KPIs that we missed, it’s my responsibility to understand why (the root cause) and to make sure countermeasures are implemented.

Q: How did you get involved with SAWF and when?

I love so many things about this organization. … I don’t see us slowing down anytime soon.

JH: Toyota was very involved with AAMA (Alabama Automotive Manufacturing Association), I had been involved with several AAMA activities. I was selected to represent AAMA on SAWF’s Advisory Board.

That was about seven years ago.

Q: When were you elected president of SAWF and what do you hope to bring to the organization or…

JH: I was elected president February 2019. Prior to that I served as vicepresident (2017-2019). I hope to continue our vision of promoting women in the automotive industry. We focus in the following areas: professional development networking/mentoring (for existing women in the automotive industry), scholarship/co-op and internship opportunity (for women wanting to enter the automotive

industry and All Girls Auto Know (for middle school girls exposing them to STEM and the automotive industry).

Q: What do you want see SAWF do during your tenure?

JH: During my tenure as president I want to focus on working with our member states’ workforce development agencies. I want them to see the value of SAWF providing future female talent into the workplace, by SAWF introducing STEM and the automotive industry during middle school, informing students about potential future opportunities including scholarship monies. Continue to network and promote the automotive industries throughout our member states.

Q: What do you love about SAWF? JH: I love so many things about this

FALL 2019 | Southern Automotive Alliance 25

E X E C U TI V E

Q& A

Horton rocking out in the Southern Automotive Conference President’s Video.

Being part of Toyota and SAWF has allowed me the opportunity to encourage and mentor so many people, especially young people. Helping them to understand that no matter where you start from you can finish where your heart desires. organization. The fact that it’s a group of about 20 women on the board and committees along with about 130 members…all volunteers. The things that we have been able to accomplish in 10 years such as awarding close to $300,000 in scholarships, launched All Girls Auto Know, starting professional development opportunities. The fact that through this hard work we are now recognized as part of the SAC. I don’t see us slowing down anytime soon.

Q:Why is it important for SAWF to be so involved with the Southern Automotive Conference?

JH: SAC is how I got involved with SAWF. But I think in terms of diversity and the diverse perspective of SAWF is why it’s important that we are involved with SAC. The workforce in the South is changing and there are more women present than ever before, so to see a 26 | Southern Automotive Alliance | FALL 2019

female[run] organization (with a lot of male support) just continues to support that diversity model.

Q: You’ve been involved in conferences for a while. So what do you think is the most important reason to have conferences like this?

JH: I will have to break this up into a few sections: Academia/student - being educated about the industry so you can pass along to your students [and] exposure for those that will be in the workforce 1-2 years. Automotive suppliers/vendors - networking and collaboration.

Automotive OEMs/Tier I - networking and collaboration but also listening to your supply base and sharing needed information about the shift in the industry.

Q: The SAC Presidents’ Video this year was cool, and you were front and center in it. What was it like making that video?

JH: It was a lot of fun. The theme was TAMA through and through. I really enjoyed talking and getting to know all the presidents.

Q: What else do you want people to know?

JH: People that know me know I love to give back. Being part of Toyota and SAWF has allowed me the opportunity to encourage and mentor so many people, especially young people. Helping them to understand that no matter where you start from you can finish where your heart desires. And letting them know there are people, companies, organizations in your corner to help you START YOUR IMPOSSIBLE. n

FALL 2019 | Southern Automotive Alliance 27

INDUSTRY OUTLOOK

Automakers face host of issues in coming months

USMCA approval, tariff issues, contract talks all loom as obstacles TEXT BY: BILL GERDES

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ach house of the U.S. Congress will be in session less than 30 days during the last three months of 2019, which is only one of the reasons things do not bode well for approval of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada (USMCA) trade agreement that replaces the former NAFTA pact.

“The clock is ticking,” says one observer of the country’s auto industry, which will be hit hard by a delay in approving the agreement.

The United States, Mexico and Canada signed the USMCA last November, but implementation is 28 | Southern Automotive Alliance | FALL 2019

subject to ratification by lawmakers in all three countries. Mexico has ratified it, Canada is in the process and various parties in the U.S. are arguing about it.

“Delay hurts America’s auto workers,” writes Rep Kevin Brady, a Republican who represents Texas’ Eighth District. “Based on concrete business plans provided by the auto industry, USMCA will add $34 billion in new manufacturing investment in the U.S. and 76,000 American jobs over five years. If Congress delays or kills USMCA, these new investments and jobs could be delayed indefinitely.”

Brady’s comments, along with those of co-writer Rep. Steve Scalise, R-La., were published in The Hill.

At a recent meeting of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago in Detroit, Charlie Evans, Fed president and CEO, referred to the “increased uncertainty among the business community as a result of the new trade policy. When businesses are weighing whether or not to make substantial investments, uncertainty tends to slow down such decisions. The auto industry has been especially challenged by the uncertainty posed by actual and proposed changes in

trade policy, as its production operations in the United States, Canada, and Mexico are closely linked across the three countries.

“The North American auto industry wasn’t always as integrated as it is today,” Evans says. “Back in 1965 the U.S. and Canada reached an industry-specific agreement that eliminated all tariffs on vehicles and parts passing between the two countries. This Auto Pact of 1965 was followed in 1989 by the Canada– United States Free Trade Agreement (CUSFTA), which further liberalized trade between the two nations. Mexico began to liberalize its trade policy during the 1980s. That process culminated with Mexico entering into the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with the U.S. and Canada.

This region-wide trade pact came into effect in 1994 and removed most of the remaining trade barriers between the three nations.”

In his opening remarks at the Auto

Sector conference in Detroit, Evans said producers of vehicles and parts have integrated their operations across North America. “Last year 16.9 million light vehicles were produced in North America. And most of them were sold within the region. The integration of economic activity in the auto sector also extends to the industry’s supply chain. Parts and subassemblies typically cross international borders multiple times before they reach the vehicle assembly line.”

According to Evans, “Today 14 companies produce vehicles in North America—nearly all of them are headquartered overseas. Five of these companies started producing vehicles in the U.S. after NAFTA came into effect.

Over half of them operate production plants in more than one NAFTA country, taking advantage of the fact that North America is one integrated economic region. It is fair to say that today North America is among the world’s

most competitive regions for vehicle production.”

The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement might incentivize more U.S. vehicle production “but it has to pass first,” says Kristin Dziczek, a vice president of the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, Mich.

Dziczek, a speaker at the Detroit conference, says USMCA faces significant hurdles in the U.S. House of Representatives. “Until you see labor change, a lot of Democrats will have trouble voting for this,” she adds.

In Washington, lawmakers are getting pressure from all sides. Business and farm groups want the new deal approved as soon as possible.

She says that for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, “Getting lawmakers to yes on USMCA is critical to our broader economy and to the long-term prosperity of our country.”

“Getting this done is our top policy priority,” says Thomas Donohue, chief

President Donald Trump speaks about USMCA

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IN D U S T R Y

O U TLO O K

Gary Jones, president UAW International, (left) and Jim Hackett, Ford president and CEO, shake hands at Ford World Headquarters to begin negotiations for the 2019 contract. Ford has more U.S. hourly UAW-represented workers than any other automaker and builds more vehicles in the U.S. than any other automaker. Photo, Sam VarnHagen

A tentative agreement is not a contract until UAW members at that company vote to ratify it – a process that generally takes about two weeks. If a majority of the UAW membership ratifies the agreement, it becomes a contract, and the UAW will move to negotiate with the next company. —Kristin Dziczek executive of the organization.

Meanwhile, labor, environmental, and other activist groups recently declared a “No Vote Until NAFTA 2.0 is Fixed” day and collected 300,000 signatures on petitions demanding changes to the trade pact.

Chief among the labor forces opposing USMCA is the UAW which currently has 1,150 contracts with some 1,600 employers in the mainland United States, Puerto Rico and Canada.

If unions “are actively opposing” the USMCA, Dziczek says, “it will be very hard to pass.” Democrats, generally supported by unions, control the U.S. House of Representatives. Republicans control the Senate. Meanwhile, there are the pending negotiations between the UAW and the auto industry.

The U.S. has surplus vehicleproduction capacity, according to some estimates, with GM having much of it.

GM has said four U.S. plants won’t be allocated product after this year. One of those plants, in Youngstown, Ohio, has already ceased operations, but they can’t be formally closed until the company and union negotiate a new labor 30 | Southern Automotive Alliance | FALL 2019

agreement.

The UAW’s contracts with GM, Ford Motor Co. and FCA US LLC expired Sept 14. The UAW said Sept. 3 it is going to negotiate with GM first. Contracts at Ford and FCA will be extended while negotiations with GM take place.

According to Dziczek, the 2019 talks are expected to be contentious and to have significant ripple effects throughout the North American automotive industry.

In a post on the CAR website, Dziczek says “If the bargainers do not reach a tentative agreement by the contract expiration date, the UAW can elect to extend the current contract or initiate a strike with the lead company. In either event, the UAW has customarily extended the terms of the current contract with the other two companies.

“A tentative agreement is not a contract until UAW members at that company vote to ratify it – a process that generally takes about two weeks.

“If a majority of the UAW membership ratifies the agreement, it becomes a contract, and the UAW will move to negotiate with the next company. The UAW may announce

a strike deadline at the subsequent company if the union’s negotiators feel they are not making progress at the bargaining table. Again, the current contract will likely be extended at the third company until negotiations wrap up at the second company.”

And then there is the thorny question of more tariffs. The Trump administration in May delayed for six months potential 25 percent tariffs on vehicles imported from Japan and the European Union on the basis that foreign imports threaten national security. The U.S. is pursuing negotiations with Japan, the European Union and other countries to work out agreements that will solve the alleged national security threats from auto imports. If no such accords are reached by mid-November, the tariffs may be implemented. Dziczek says the 232 tariffs on imported autos and parts are the industry’s “most significant threat.”

Last year the United States imported $174 billion worth of passenger cars, $157 billion of parts and $43 billion of other vehicles.

Tariffs are paid by importers, who usually pass the costs onto customers. n

General Motors Chairman and CEO Mary Barra addresses the gathering Tuesday, July 16, 2019 in Detroit, Michigan, as the United Auto Workers and GM open 2019 contract talks on a new national agreement to replace the current four-year agreement that expires at midnight Sept. 14. (Photo by Steve Fecht for General Motors)

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Strengthening Relationships Annual Southern Automotive Conference helps bring industry together in Nashville TEXT BY: MICHELLE LOVE

The iconic Music City Center in Nashville plays host to manufacturers and suppliers among others at SAC2019.

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he 12th annual Southern Automotive Conference (SAC) will be held in Nashville September 25-27, and it will be a networking hub for the who’s who of the Southern automotive industry.

This year the event is hosted by the Tennessee Automotive Manufacturer 32 | Southern Automotive Alliance | FALL 2019

Association along with its executive director, Ashley Frye.

Entering its 12th year, the conference has built a reputation for providing networking opportunities to everyone in the automotive industry.

Its website even promises “more opportunities than ever to network.”

According to its website, industry executives from Europe; South, Central, and North America; countries of the Nordic region; and Asia will be present.

“The SAC has consistently attracted top-level decision makers including those responsible for site selection, construction, plant and equipment, production processes, components, quality, transportation, logistics and supply chain matters, HR/benefit issues, accounting and finance, and legal solutions such as OSHA, product liability, and intellectual property,” the website notes.

Sheila Wardy of PMT Integrated Media and Events coordinates the conference and says that SAC2019 will attract automotive players ranging from OEMs to Tier 1, 2, and 3 suppliers to even service providers. “I like to say it’s the watering hole where everybody comes to drink. You can see everybody

Each year, SAC brings together industry experts from OEM leadership, to associations, to policy makers and theorists to vendors looking to promote the latest car building technology. These images are from SAC2018.

you want to see. There are people from all positions within their individual companies. There are going to be plant managers, engineers, HR managers, purchasing agents, it really is a cross section of all types of job positions,” Wardy says.

The SAC serves an educational purpose, Wardy says, but attendees gain so much more than information.

“Mostly it’s your opportunity to see these people who normally you would have to fly all over the country to see… all at once.”

The conference represents the major factors of the southern automotive industry including Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and South Carolina and Kentucky. “South Carolina and Kentucky are associate members, as the Southern Automotive Women’s Forum - that’s an association of women in

automotive manufacturing across the southern states - they are also associate members in the SAC,” says Wardy.

Attendees are encouraged to support the conference via social media, as the event’s website provides a list of ways individuals can keep track of the action via Instagram and Twitter.

Representing such a diverse community of individuals, it is no surprise the list of the conference’s sponsors is just as varied. This year the premier sponsor is Frost Brown Todd, but other sponsors include Canada’s automotive sector, Aerotek, and NAOS Staffing, LLC. Having so much sponsorship from across automotive sectors, makes the SAC successful every year and contributes to the event’s representation of such a diverse industrial community, according to

SAC2019 website.

The conference will be loaded with events designed to highlight the individuals who play a vital role in the industry. “We are going to have a trade show floor that is jam packed with exhibitors,” Wardy says. “We expect 240 exhibitors, 1,200 attendees, and we expect to be at a sell-out situation with those numbers and that would be very similar to last year.”

There will be several opportunities for attendees to attend panels led by speakers who represent some of the largest corporations in the automotive industry.

For example, on Thursday, September 26, there will be seven specific panels with keynote speakers covering a range of topics including tariffs and trades and the current state

We are where automotive is moving. Detroit used to have the lock on that but it’s not the case anymore. The workers are in the south and it makes good economic [sense] for automakers to do business in the south. — Sheila Wardy FALL 2019 | Southern Automotive Alliance 33

Next year’s SAC will be held in Biloxi, Mississippi at the Beau Rivage resort and casino

of the automotive industry. Guests can look forward to hearing from speakers including Stuart Countess, the chief operating officer of Kia Motors Manufacturing in Georgia; Emily Louder, the vice president of administration of Toyota in Mississippi; and Harry White, the director of Body in White at Volvo Cars.

There will also be an OEM panel lead by moderator Rick Youngblood, the president of TAMA, and a former Nissan executive. Wardy says there will also be a return of the Stars of Southern Manufacturing Awards Program, which is dedicated to the people on the “front lines in the manufacturing plants who go above and beyond with their jobs.”

While the educational side is prominent, Wardy says it is the relationships that make the event such a success. “There’s a lot you take away from the speakers but most of all I believe people take away stronger relationships with others in the industry,” she says.

This year the SAC is premiering a SAC Student Day sponsored by Aerotek, on Friday, September 27. Students are invited to attend for free, but need to register online. The Student Day program gives interested young people the opportunity to network and learn about the automotive industry. In order to qualify for Student Day, students have to be in school full time, at least 16 years of age, and able to present a valid student ID upon picking up their registration pass.

Wardy says organizers are anticipating a rather large turnout of students. “We expect a lot of energy and vitality on that day so [the students] can network and meet the players of the automotive industry. The students, they are the future…something all of the automotive manufacturers are concerned about, they want to know who the talented young individuals are,” she says.

The SAC rotates its location every four years and is expected to take place in Biloxi, Mississippi in 2020. “It’s kind

There’s a lot you take away from the speakers but most of all I believe people take away stronger relationships with others in the industry. — Sheila Wardy 34 | Southern Automotive Alliance | FALL 2019

of like the Olympics,” Wardy laughs.

The 2018 SAC took place in Atlanta, and the year before the conference was held in Birmingham.

With the south’s growing hold over the automotive industry, Wardy says she hopes the conference will continue to grow along with it. “The south’s automotive industry is one of the biggest factors of the United States economic and industrial success,” she says. “We are where automotive is moving. Detroit used to have the lock on that but it’s not the case anymore. The workers are in the south and it makes good economic [sense] for automakers to do business in the south.”

Wardy adds that anyone who may have to miss this year’s conference does not have to be disappointed. “Come see us in Biloxi in 2020,” she says. “That’s the great thing about doing this every year. Everyone has the opportunity to experience what makes this industry so great.” n To be included in the Southern Automotive Conference Social Media Wall, use the hashtags #SAC2019, #SACMCC, #SACPowerofPerformance.

FALL 2019 | Southern Automotive Alliance 35

TEXT BY: NICK PATTERSON // PHOTOS: COURTESY OF THE OEMS

The growing array of automobiles built in Southern plants reflects the diversity of the industry

WHAT’S MADE HERE? or many years now, the Southern U.S. has been the fastest growing region in the country for the automotive industry. Besides the number suppliers and other related businesses emerging in the sector, the sheer volume of cars produced in Southern plants can be staggering, and perhaps surprising.

Here’s a look at the cars, trucks and buses the Southern automotive sector regularly produces – with more just around the corner.

But first, a little history Cars have been produced in the South for almost as long as there have been cars. Consider a few examples (all of which have been chronicled in more detail in various issues of this magazine’s Vintage feature): Ford Motor Company started assembling Model T Town Cars, Touring Cars and Runabouts in 1913 at its Louisville, Kentucky Assembly Plant. Today, the Kentucky Truck Plant in Louisville, which opened in 1969, produces F-150s and Ford Super Duty 36 | Southern Automotive Alliance / FALL 2019

Mercedes-Benz GLE SUV made in Vance, Alabama at MBUSI; Honda Pilot built in Lincoln, Alabama; New Flyer Xcelsior made in Anniston, Alabama; Autocar garbage truck built in Birmingham, Alabama

Clockwise from above: Kia Sorento, built in West Point, Georgia, Honda Ridgeline made in Lincoln, Alabama, Hyundai Elantra built in Montgomery, Alabama, Kia Telluride made in West Point, Georgia, Blue Bird bus made in Fort Valley, Georgia, Panoz Avezzano, built in Hoschton, Georgia

pickups.

Of course, GM has been building the Corvette in Bowling Green, Kentucky, since 1981. Long before that, however, Louisville was the home of both the Urban Electric Truck, manufactured from 1912 to 1916, and the Dixie Flyer, which was built from 1916 to 1923.

Both the electric truck and the Dixie Flyer were built by a company called Kentucky Wagon.

In 1927, GM built a plant in Lakewood Heights on Atlanta’s southeast side, where it would build Chevrolets, Pontiacs, Oldsmobiles, and Buicks, and for a time, GMC and Chevy trucks.

When that plant closed in 1990, GM was building the Chevy Caprice at Lakewood.

GM also opened a plant in Doraville Georgia in 1947. From then until 2008, the Doraville Assembly plant pumped out Buicks, Oldsmobiles, Pontiacs, Chevys, Saturns and Opels.

In Tennessee, GM opened its Spring FALL 2019 / Southern Automotive Alliance 37

Left then clockwise: Nissan Rogue, built in Smyrna, Tennessee, Volkswagen Passat, made in Chattanooga, Tennessee, Volkswagen Atlas, built in Chattanooga, Infiniti QX60 SUV, made in Smyrna; GMC Acadia, built in Spring Hill, Tennessee, Cadillac XT6 made in Spring Hill, Toyota Corolla, made in Blue Springs, Mississippi, Nissan Titan, made in Canton, Mississippi, Nissan Pathfinder, made in Smyrna

38 | Southern Automotive Alliance / FALL 2019

Hill Plant in 1985, and from 1990 until 2009, built Saturns there.

Today, the reopened plant produces GMC Acadia, Cadillac XT-5, and XT-6.

Considerably before GM stepped into Tennessee, Nashville in the 1900s became the home for the Dorris Motor Car Company, (built originally in St.Louis) by a native son, George Preston Dorris.

The company stopped building cars in 1926 when it went bankrupt.

And that wasn’t the only car plant in Nashville; the Marathon Motor Works company was building cars in the city from 1907 to 1914 – 12 different models, 200 cars a month, before production ground to a halt when the company went out of business.

Alabama’s car making legacy dates back to 1909, when the Great Southern Automobile Company built its models in Birmingham for 18 years. Right after that, Preston Motors Premocar started up in Birmingham in 1918 for a short run that ended in 1923. Keller Motor Company of Huntsville had an even shorter run of two years from 1947 to 1949 during which time it produced 18 cars before its founder, George D. Keller, died.

South Carolina had the Anderson automobile built starting in 1916 in Rock Hill. Until 1925, John Gary Anderson’s automobile was considered by some to be a rival to Henry Ford based on the quality of his car. Unlike Ford, though, which was selling Model Ts for less than $300, Anderson models cost between $1650 for a five-passenger touring car, with some sedans and coupes listing for $3,200.

Texas also has a longstanding history of car making: the Little Motor Kar Company built a handful of Texmobiles before its grandsounding plans fell apart following scandal and bankruptcy.

The modern era – the South rises again To the gratitude of the Southern economy, after years of fits and starts, auto making has made a substantial and much more solid return to the region.

Alabama It began with Mercedes-Benz U.S. International, which announced plans to build an SUV in Vance, Alabama in 1993. Today the company builds the Mercedes-Benz GLE-Class, and GLS-Class FALL 2019 / Southern Automotive Alliance 39

40 | Southern Automotive Alliance / FALL 2019

SUVs, and C-Class sedans at the Vance plant. And in a recent expansion, MBUSI will soon be building a new class of electric vehicles at a site nearby.

Honda started production in Alabama in 2001, and today at its plant near Lincoln, it produces the Odyssey minivan, Passport and Pilot SUVs, Ridgeline pickup, and Acura MDX crossover SUV. South Korea’s Hyundai started making cars in Montgomery, Alabama with the first rolling off the line in 2005. Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama now produces Hyundai Elantra and Sonata sedans, and the Hyundai Santa Fe SUV. Other companies are making vehicles bigger than cars in Alabama. New Flyer, a Canadian company which ranks as North America’s biggest transit bus manufacturer, builds battery electric buses in its Anniston factory. And Autocar, a 121-year-old company based in Indiana, opened a second factory in Birmingham in 2017.

Georgia In Georgia, South Korea’s Kia Motors Manufacturing Georgia started making cars in West Point in 2009.

The company’s first U.S. plant builds Kia’s Optima sedan, Sorento, and Telluride SUVs. Quietly making boutique vehicles in Hoschton, Georgia — cars with names like Avezzano and Esperante — Panoz Sportscars has been a well-kept secret since 1989. Not exactly off-the-rack, Panoz makes stylish, pricey, bespoke roadsters, that have been featured on Jay Leno’s web-based car series.

School buses also originate in Georgia, specifically Fort Valley, where Blue Bird Corporation has been making a variety of models since 1927.

Mississippi The state of Mississippi boasts two Japanese car making factories.

Toyota Motor Manufacturing Mississippi produces the Corolla at the plant in Blue Springs. The eighth North American assembly plant for Toyota opened in 2011.

Nissan’s Canton Vehicle Assembly Plant began operations in 2003. Workers at that plant build the Altima sedan, Frontier, Titan and Titan XD pickups, the Murano SUV, and the Nissan NV passenger and cargo vans.

Tennessee The Nissan Smyrna assembly plant began production in 1983. The plant produces Altima and Maxima sedans, the LEAF electric sedan, Pathfinder and Rogue SUVs, Opposite page: BMW X3 and X4 built in Greer, South Carolina, Mercedes Sprinter Van built from complete knock down in Ladson, South Carolina, Toyota RAV4s constructed in Georgetown, Kentucky, Volvo S60 sedan made in Ridgeville, South Carolina, Lincoln Navigator built in Louisville, Kentucky, Ford Expedition, built in Louisville. THIS PAGE: Corvette built in Bowling Green, Kentucky, Lexus ES350 built in Georgetown, Kentucky, Ford Super Duty built in Louisville, Ford Escape, made in Louisville.

FALL 2019 / Southern Automotive Alliance 41

and the Infiniti QX60 SUV. General Motors, as noted above, builds GMC Acadia, Cadillac XT-5, and XT-6 at it’s retooled Spring Hill plant.

The Volkswagen Chattanooga Assembly plant has been building Passat sedans since 2011. It has since added the Atlas SUV in 2012, and this year announced the I.D. Crozz and Buzz all electric vehicles starting in 2022.

South Carolina The Palmetto State is home to three European brands — BMW, built in Spartanburg starting in 1994, Swedish nameplate Volvo, now owned by the company Geely, and Mercedes-Benz Vans.

BMW builds the SUVs designated X3, X4, X5, X6, and X7 at its plant, actually located in Greer. Volvo opened its Ridgeville, South Carolina plant in 2018. It produces the S60 sedan. Mercedes-Benz produces its popular Sprinter vans at its Ladson, South Carolina plant, although in that case the vehicle comes as a CKD — complete knockdown kit — of parts assembled at the plant.

Kentucky The Bluegrass state has been making cars and trucks for decades. Today, Toyota makes Camry and Avalon sedans there in Georgetown, as well as the RAV4 Hybrid SUV and the Lexus ES 350 sedan.

In Louisville at the Kentucky Truck Plant, Ford makes the Super Duty pickup, Expedition and Expedition EL/Max SUVs, Ford Escape compact crossover SUV, as well as Lincoln Navigator and Navigator L SUVS, and the Lincoln Corsair, a premium twin to the Escape.

Today GM makes all Corvettes in only one place, the plant in Bowling Green, which opened in 1981.

Toyota Tundra built in San Antonio, Texas (You left off your TX logo), Cadillac Escalade built in Arlington, Texas, GMC Yukon built in Arlington 42 | Southern Automotive Alliance / FALL 2019

Texas GM and Toyota both make their home in the Lone Star state. GM builds Cadillac Escalade, and Escalade ESV, as well as Chevrolet Tahoe, and Suburban, and GMC Yukon, and Yukon XL at its plant in Arlington.

Toyota also builds trucks in Texas; San Antonio is home to the plant that builds both the Tacoma and the Tundra pickups. n

FALL 2019 / Southern Automotive Alliance 43

Faces of the Industry

Cars And Economic Development

Hollie Pegg lives life on the run, promoting automotive and working to bring jobs to Alabama TEXT BY: NICK PATTERSON // PHOTOS COURTESY OF: HOLLIE PEGG

H

ollie Pegg stays on the go.

As the assistant director of Asian and automotive business strategies for the Alabama Department of Commerce she’s constantly in motion, traveling around the state, the country and abroad, particularly to Asia — an area she’s become quite familiar with dealing with carmakers from the region which have built plants in the state.

The day she squeezed in time for this interview, she was in her car, traveling to Anniston, Alabama to meet with a company considering an expansion.

“I spend a lot of time in bringing those new industries in, but obviously, we also have to think about the companies that are already here and how we can best support them to be successful,” she says.

Many of those companies are 44 | Southern Automotive Alliance / FALL 2019

automotive in nature, and that plus economic development — bringing industries into the state, sums up a big chunk of Pegg’s career.

“Before I joined the Department of Commerce I worked with a regional planning commission and that was right during the time that Hyundai was locating in Montgomery,” she says. “So, my early work was supporting those suppliers and I made that transition over to what was then the Alabama Development Office. Initially my responsibility was just the Korean automotive industry. So, I worked directly with Hyundai… and those suppliers — which we have well over 75

now in this state.”

As Alabama’s economic health has become more and more connected to the health of the automotive industry, Pegg’s responsibilities at commerce, which she joined 13 years ago, have reflected that shift. Most of her time is spent working with car manufacturers and suppliers of parts and components for cars.

“Automotive is critical to Alabama since we have Mercedes locating in Alabama in the mid-90s, then growing from there, Honda, Hyundai, Toyota Engine plant and our newest friends, Mazda— we have the Mazda Toyota assembly facility under construction in Huntsville,” she says.

With most of the automotive manufacturing plants in the state being subsidiaries of Asian countries, Pegg’s focus is on the East. “So, I do go to Asia, usually about twice a year, sometimes a little more,” she says. “We visit both Japan and Korea. We’re also heavily involved in the Southeast U.S. Japan [Association], the Alabama Chapter of SEUS.” “The Southeast U.S.- Japan Association (SEUS-Japan) was established in 1976 to promote trade, investment, understanding and friendship between Japan and the southeastern United States,” as noted on the organization’s website, which points out that there is a Japanese counterpart of the organization as well, and that both the US and Japanese groups include top business leaders and government officials like Pegg.

Despite all that, though, Pegg can’t speak either Korean or Japanese. “I

We’ve done very well with our automotive and aerospace and other industries, but we do still have a large rural section particularly in southwest Alabama that is struggling. So, I think now that’s our next step — is how can we help those areas.

I’ve made some long-term, lifetime friendships and that aspect of the job is one of my favorite things. I could be working in Scottsboro, Alabama one day and in Mobile, the next. think we have determined that that’s just not for me,” she says. “I can say ‘thank you’ pretty well. Unfortunately, that’s about it. Luckily most of our Asian friends speak very good English.”

A Montgomery native since the age of 10, Pegg’s career has been focused on improving the economic fortunes of the regions in a state whose residents have been particularly subject to the ebb and flow of industry. For seven years, she worked as program manager of Economic and Community Development for the South Central Alabama Development Commission, working directly with local governments to promote growth and prosperity in six mostly rural counties.

Working for the public good is a natural outgrowth of her educational background — “I have a BA in history from Auburn, a master’s degree in public administration,” she says. “That really started my interest in public sector work and my entire career has been public sector work.”

She’s seen the state transformed by automotive investment.

“It’s amazing to drive down the interstate and to see those companies, companies that we have worked with as a team and that I’ve worked with as part of my role at the Department of Commerce and really understanding how that has changed other people’s lives, particularly in the rural areas,” she says. “Alabama was hit very hard

by NAFTA.... We had a strong textile industry and particularly on that 85 corridor going toward Georgia, they were hit very hard — Chambers County and some of those other places.

So really understanding that when those [automotive] suppliers came in and the jobs they were able to create, allowed people to keep their homes, to not have to move… to me that was the most important part of economic development.”

The automotive industry has more

than made up for the loss of textile jobs in Alabama, she notes.

“You can go back and look at the unemployment numbers in many of those areas, particularly if you look at Chambers County and that sector over there in east Alabama that have benefited not just from Hyundai suppliers, but also, obviously, from the Kia suppliers,” Pegg says noting that now those areas are at “double-digit employment and they are now tracking at or below the state [unemployment] average. So, it has really made a huge difference.”

Despite that, she says, there is still significant work to be done strengthening the economies of Alabama’s rural areas. “Our recent location of Toyota Mazda — I was heavily involved with that project and I think that we’re doing very well,” Pegg says. “What we’re really looking at now is how do we help the rural parts of the state. We’ve done very well with our automotive and aerospace and other industries, but we do still have a large rural section particularly in southwest Alabama that is struggling. So, I think now that’s our next step - is how can we help those areas.”

With so much on her plate, in a state where automotive developments are everyday occurrences, it’s probably not surprising that she recently spent six out of seven weeks on the road.

Even so, she finds time to issue a “War Eagle” now and again — she’s an Auburn Tigers football fan — and she makes the time for her 16-year-old son, “who’s very involved in cross country and track…. That keeps me very busy,” she says. “And I also love dogs.”

Still, talking to Pegg, it’s clear she loves the people in the state and the job that allows her to serve them.

“In Alabama, economic development is a team sport,” she says, noting that it’s not only about

the commerce department. “Just as critical to that are our local partners.

That is one of the things I do truly enjoy about my job, is the ability to work with economic developers and elected officials throughout the state,” Pegg says. “I’ve made some long-term, lifetime friendships and that aspect of the job is one of my favorite things.

I could be working in Scottsboro, Alabama one day and in Mobile, the next. And really understanding those areas and the people there are very important to me.” n FALL 2019 / Southern Automotive Alliance 45

Faces of the Industry

Service Delivered With Heart Jennifer Mead with a certificate announcing the company’s selection by Women in Trucking as a 2019 Top WomanOwned Business in Transportation.

Georgia company that arranges delivery of everything from concert equipment to confidential banking information and SEC football championship T-shirts wants customers to fall in love with it TEXT BY: CARLA CALDWELL PHOTOS COURTESY OF: S-2INTERNATIONAL/JENNIFER MEAD

J

ennifer Mead was a newly married Kent State graduate living in Ohio when she interviewed for a sales job with an air freight transportation company in 1992. With little sales experience she didn’t get the job, but she did get a recommendation — in Detroit.

Mead and her husband, Chris,

46 | Southern Automotive Alliance / FALL 2019

then a branch manager for Kinko’s, took a leap of faith and moved to Michigan. There, Jennifer Mead learned the automotive side of the freight transportation industry, working with manufacturers including GM and Ford, along with Tier 1 and Tier 2 parts suppliers.

Today, Mead is CEO and owner

of McDonough, Georgia-based S-2international LLC, which she founded 15 years ago. S-2 refers to Solutions Source. The single-service provider of third-party transportation management is located about 30 minutes south of Atlanta, and handles deliveries throughout the United States, Mexico, and Canada.

The company reports an on-time performance rate of 99 percent.

S-2international’s goals include reaching $20 million in revenue in 2020. The Meads are considering opening an additional office in South Carolina, and establishing satellite offices with independent agents throughout the U.S. The business manages time- and service-sensitive ground shipments using a fleet of vans and trucks. More specialized services include constant surveillance/high security shipments; air freight charters and white glove service. S-2 also handles shipments some other firms won’t touch because of security requirements — like smokeless tobacco (high theft) and banking documents (sealed trucks, two drivers, and specific protocols).

The company has arranged deliveries of equipment to concert venues, and of T-shirts for SEC and NFL championship games. “We might have to have 10 or 15 trucks available to take shirts where they must go right away. You must have trucks on standby with T-shirts for each team, because both teams won’t be the winner,” Mead explains.

In July, the nonprofit Women in Trucking (WIT) Association recognized S-2 as one of the 2019 Top WomanOwned Businesses in Transportation.

The award applauds women in leadership and encourages more women to become proactive leaders within their organizations.

The Road to Success Mead has a psychology degree, but decided, with prodding from her dad, to go into sales instead. Her skills initially landed a job with an Ohio office equipment company. But Mead found selling typewriters — making 100 cold calls and 10 face-to-face demonstrations weekly — tough. After about four months, she paid a recruiter to find something else and went to work in air freight.

In Michigan, Mead earned a solid reputation, and soon moved to another company that sold air freight services, operated a cross-stock facility for GM service parts and worked with Ford. She was most involved with the company’s work for Ford, which included managing in-bound parts transportation to the automaker’s plants east of the Mississippi River. “If there was a disruption in their supply chain and they needed to get things more quickly, we would determine where parts were coming from and going to and optimize that shipment,” she says.

That experience, she says, “helped me understand how important timecritical freight management is to an operation.”

Few women worked in her industry at the time; Mead remembers calling on only one woman in a Detroit traffic department. That woman had more experience working in transportation and with auto suppliers and shared her knowledge. “She showed me the ropes regarding how to navigate the male-dominated world of automotive,” Mead recalls.

Later, when Mead was tapped to head sales of an employers’ premium logistics services, she hired the woman whose advice had helped her along.

“At 26, 27, I had no experience in sales, transportation or automotive.

When I was 28, I was managing director of a multi-million-dollar premium logistics company,” says Mead.

Peach State Promotion A promotion in 1997 led Mead to Atlanta where she managed premium

logistics and marketing for an air freight company. Expecting her second child, she became an independent contractor, selling expedited ground services. Later, though, working for a national company, Mead found herself traveling 40 weeks a year. With two toddlers at home she longed for time with family.

That’s when she went out on her own for good. Her husband Chris worked behind the scenes to handle accounting for her company and left Kinko’s to become a teacher, which gave him more time with their children.

“Chris basically had three jobs — teacher, taking care of the kids and supporting the business through the accounting side,” Mead says.

S-2international grew and Chris joined the company full time. “It’s been great,” she says. “I could not have started the business without his support and everything he did behind the scenes with the kids, and then stepping up into a new business. He is an equal partner.”

Since 2010, S-2international has grown from Jennifer and Chris to 30 employees. And Mead transformed S-2 from being a sales organization to becoming a freight broker.

Today, S-2 identifies options for customers who want to utilize multiple shipping methods. “We manage shipments from the sourcing of capacity to the delivery of the product.

We track it from the time we select a carrier to the time a shipment is delivered. We make sure it’s managed the best way possible. If there are any problems, we are going to let the customer know and have a pre-planned solution. We make their jobs easier.”

S-2international’s mission is “Service Delivered with Heart,” Mead says, adding that the mission ties in the S-2’s core principles. “The heart has

four chambers and we have four core principles — integrity, authenticity, proactivity, and quality,” she says. “We want our customers to truly love us. Our daily mission is to make sure everything we do comes from an authentic place of wanting to serve the customer in the best way possible.”

Community and family S-2 works with schools and charities to improve the community. Its annual Santa party in 2018, for instance, collected donations to support military veterans. The company has held fundraisers for Haven House, a domestic violence shelter; and donated money for supplies when a school’s softball team hosted Halloween activities at the shelter.

S-2 also strives to help employees have a quality work-life balance.

“When I started the business, it was because I did not want to have the grind of traveling. I wanted to be with my family,” adds Mead, who treasures family time, including watching her daughters play sports.

Mead says she was honored when notified about the 2019 Women in Trucking Association award. “It’s nice when people say you have made somewhat of an impact,” Mead says, adding she hopes to do more in a big way: she’s looking into ways to aid in the trucking industry’s fight against sex trafficking, a significant issue in Georgia.

Working in transportation has many benefits, she says.

“Everything stems from transportation and there always will be a need. It’s one of the most challenging and exciting industries. Every single day is different, and you don’t know what is going to be thrown at you. If you don’t like to be bored and want job security — transportation is a great career.” n

Everything stems from transportation and there always will be a need. It’s one of the most challenging and exciting industries.

Every single day is different, and you don’t know what is going to be thrown at you. If you don’t like to be bored and want job security, transportation is a great career.

FALL 2019 / Southern Automotive Alliance 47

Supplier Profile

Southeastern Tool & Design

“We’re Here to Improve Our Customers’ Lives” Chattanooga’s Southeastern Tool & Design is known for creative, quick-turnaround automation services TEXT BY: NANCY HENDERSON // PHOTOS BY: BENJAMIN CHASE

I

n the spacious assembly area at Southeastern Tool & Design on the outskirts of downtown Chattanooga, Tennessee two workers are placing cartridges in a material handling system that will hold parts for car hatches produced at the local Volkswagen plant. Using a check gauge, they make sure each piece fits perfectly before tightening it down.

“When you do everything custom, you don’t have the luxury of setting something up once and letting it go,” says SETD president and COO Justin Whitmire, motioning toward the work station. “If it’s got multiple machining steps, we’ll machine it, it goes through inspection, and we machine it again. We make sure to check through every step.”

In the adjacent room, more employees are drilling holes in u-shaped

48 | Southern Automotive Alliance / FALL 2019

shackles for a manufacturer of lifting devices, while in the manual machining area, a skilled journeyman tool and die maker (who at night entertains audiences with his singing and guitar playing) is crafting a new fixture for a customer.

“All of our projects end up having an incredibly short timeline,” Whitmire says, returning to the VW cartridge assembly. “We’ve got 41 cartridges going out, so we’ve got everybody out here, including our PLC programmer, just trying to get it done. Everybody wears different hats and pitches in to help out.

That’s another thing that makes it fun to work here.”

Born as a small shop in Ringgold, Georgia, in 1980, SETD initially served the carpet and flooring industry in nearby Dalton. Lou Ziebold bought the 30,000-square-foot Chattanooga facility

in 2010 and, acknowledging the decline of the carpet market, began vigorously pursuing Volkswagen as a primary customer. After becoming ISO-registered and purchasing a 3D FaroArm tool to measure fixtures once they were built, the company landed its first big order from VW, and over the next few years evolved from a modest machine shop to an engineered solution provider offering precision and production machining, reverse engineering and fabrication.

“You name it, we build it,” says Whitmire, noting examples such as lift and load assists, manipulators, installation tooling, weld fixtures and automated equipment.

SETD currently employs 35 skilled workers, from engineers to machinists.

Although the company serves industries ranging from food and medical to power generation, the crux of its business comes from regional OEMs and Tier 1 automotive suppliers such as DENSO, which produces air conditioning and engine cooling components and systems in Athens, Tennessee, and Gestamp, a parts manufacturer located near the Chattanooga VW plant.

Whitmire was hired as vice president of engineering and operations after a seven-year management tenure at Dover Corporation, where he eventually led a $150 million division of Hillphoenix, a leader in commercial refrigeration systems in Iowa. He was promoted to president in June and will take over for Ziebold, who retires in October.

Whitmire’s automotive career began in Kentucky, where in 2005 he went to work as a temporary assembly line worker building convertible roofs. “I hadn’t been exposed to manufacturing up until that point, but after I saw it, it just clicked with me,” says Whitmire. “I could see the processes. I understood how things went together. I started raising my hand at every opportunity and worked my way from an

FALL 2019 / Southern Automotive Alliance 49

SU P P LI ER

P R OF I LE

When we work on a project, we have the skillset, the resources to understand what the customer is looking for, bringing old and new ideas to form a creative solution that we can then implement. It’s important because if we don’t do that, we’re just another machine shop or we’re just another tooling provider. — Justin Whitmire assembly technician on the floor to a manufacturing engineer, and I actually got to launch two lines for them before I finally decided to go back and get my MBA.” Exceeding customer expectations is the No. 1 priority at SETD, Whitmire says.

“We don’t have a proprietary product that we bring to the market. When we work on a project, we have the skillset, the resources to understand what the customer is looking for, bringing old and new ideas to form a creative solution that we can then implement. It’s important because if we don’t do that, we’re just another machine shop or we’re just another tooling provider. We’re not giving the customer anything different than someone else down the road.”

Take, for example, the three-robot cell a customer needed in a hurry. SETD received the purchase order at the end of November; by mid-January the system was up and running.

“We have the ability to do things that other people say they won’t, so we’re literally engineering as we go along,” Whitmire says. “We have electricians looking over the shoulder of the electrical 50 | Southern Automotive Alliance / FALL 2019

engineer as he’s drawing it up, wiring it up, programming it around the clock to get it up and running in the customer’s time frame.”

In fact, it’s the synergy of the SETD team that makes the company truly unique, according to Whitmire. “We have a really dedicated, bright group of people who are engaged in what we’re trying to do who are great at listening to the customer, understanding their needs and then executing the project at hand. I can’t say enough about the team. When push comes to shove and we’re up against the wall or we’ve got a tight timeline on a project, everybody bands together and we go out and get it done.”

The ideal SETD employee is driven by a passion to learn, grow, improve, try new things and work with the rest of the team. It’s not always easy to find that type of person, says Whitmire. “Workforce is definitely one of the biggest challenges for us, especially as it relates to machining. Machining is a dying trade.

There are not a lot of younger people coming into it, so finding those guys has been a challenge.”

In the past, the company employed

new workers based on specific skillsets.

“Well, it wasn’t working out for us, mainly because those people with that skillset didn’t necessarily fit our culture and our business,” says Whitmire. “So we stopped and said, ‘All right. What is our mission? Why are we here? What are those core values that are truly a part of who we are?’”

The result: a four-point value system — “innovation driven by learning, commitment to each other, pride in what we do, cultivating trusting relationships”—that not only guides the day-to-day operations, but has become an integral part of the hiring process. “We care more about people that match with the culture that have these core values and that can get on board and align with the mission than the skillset,” Whitmire says. “We’ll take somebody with a lower skillset that meets those core values because we know that in the end it will be a more successful hire. It will be more positive for them because they’ll enjoy the company and want to be on board long-term.”

Whitmire especially enjoys developing the internal team and relationships with customers. The unintentional, but now prime location of the SETD shop at the edge of the trendy Southside district, is also a plus and something that helps set the company apart from the usual industrial park setting.

“And,” Whitmire points out, “we get to solve some really cool problems.

A customer comes to us and says, ‘We need to be able to move this hatch around, so what’s the best way to do that with a pneumatic tool?’ And we just sit down and think and brainstorm and come up with different ideas, and then see it executed.

“We’re here to improve our customers’ lives,” he adds. “We want our customers to be the ones that get promoted because we executed so well on a project. That’s not just an afterthought for us. If we say something’s going to be done, then it’s going to be done.” n

FALL 2019 / Southern Automotive Alliance 51

KUDOS

Accelerating Automotive Interest Students will have a day to get to know the automotive industry and the potential careers it holds during the Southern Automotive Conference’s first Student Day.

Student Day at SAC is tip of the spear for Aerotek’s aim to assist industry

BY CARA D. CLARK // PHOTOS: LYNSEY WEATHERSPOON.

T

his year’s Southern Automotive Conference in Nashville, Tennessee will include a unique component, courtesy of Aerotek, a recruiting and staffing service. On Sept.

27, Aerotek will sponsor a Student Day. The importance of this initiative became obvious at last year’s SAC in Atlanta where Aerotek realized there is great potential for students to have an inside view of the fast-growing, diverse industry.

Lucas Hiler, Aerotek’s director of strategic sales for transportation, says it’s difficult to anticipate the turnout for Student Day during its inaugural year, but he’s hoping for a cross section of high school and university students.

“It’s a great opportunity for students to understand and interact with potential future employers like OEMs,” Hiler says.

“Each will have an area of specialization whether engineering or production. We

52 | Southern Automotive Alliance / FALL 2019

expect a diverse group of individuals seeking future employers.”

The Student Day at SAC will offer students opportunities to stroll the exhibit floor interacting with the exhibitors from Tier 1 suppliers to staffing organizations, including Aerotek.

“It’s a great opportunity for interaction and networking concurrently while interacting on the exhibit floor,” he says. “We will have various presentations throughout the day, typically facilitated by the OEMs, and they can learn about plants being constructed in the region and talent strategies an OEM is implementing. “ Hiler says he expects when students attend the conference, their perception of what an automotive job is will change.

“Most people think an automotive job is production or even engineering, but the automotive world is expanding

into more than what it has been in the past,” Hiler says. “If you look at software development and today’s vehicles, the industry has expanded into so much more than an assembly or production job.

“Students may have a passion for software development but never realized it was possible to pursue those dreams in automotive. So many of these positions have become so specialized and specific to the industry.”

The Aerotek program provides students with a free exhibition access registration to attend the conference, specifically on Friday, Sept. 27 from 7 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. Vendor categories include automotive parts manufacturers and suppliers, high-technology service providers, logistics and transportation providers, construction and design, education institutions, banking and financial institutions, staffing agencies, and consultants, as well as economic development agencies.

“The growth of autonomous vehicles is one of the reasons we have such an interest in developing students’ passion for the automotive field,” Hiler says. “The options in automotive are growing. These jobs just aren’t on the manufacturing floor. The diversity of positions we support are anywhere from entry level production jobs to robotics to software developers working in the research lab.”

Hiler says an important way to appeal to the future workforce in the industry is to demonstrate the array of careers and the potential for career development once they embark on that path. He points out that by the time they graduate and enter the workforce, current high school and even college students may be employed in jobs or positions that do not yet exist — that’s the pace the industry is growing and changing. Aerotek wants to be on the cusp of that change.

“As we continue to partner with our

The students invited to SAC2019’s student day will be older than these kids from last year’s conference in Atlanta, but automakers, suppliers and others trying to recruit future employees early.

customers in the automotive industry, from small manufacturers to some of the largest, the talent acquisition challenges are the same for all companies,” Hiler says. “We look at the Southern Automotive Conference and how we are partnering with the students as the tip of the spear in sparking that interest in automotive for young people to work in careers that support the industry.”

Hiler’s work with Aerotek is primarily with the automotive industry from his San Antonio, Texas, office. He says it was in 1989 that the company established its automotive division and began partnering with many of the larger OEMs throughout the country.

“We’ve grown exponentially since then,” Hiler says. “Part of what I love about the industry is how it has evolved.

When I started with Aerotek, automotive consisted of engineers and assembly workers. It involved making vehicles and production employees. Fourteen years ago, there was very little talk about autonomous vehicles, and now there are many opportunities there.”

According to Hiler automotive has found innovative ways to recruit that some industries have yet to realize — such as supporting students earning associate degrees through training as early as high school. Aerotek likes to connect with those students to give them a foot in the door with its customers.

While recruiters are usually competitive in any market, including automotive, Hiler says this partnership with SAC “isn’t about a competitive landscape. This is about Aerotek and

automotive coming together in a forum and helping people find a career path.

This is not about sponsoring a happy hour or putting our logo on the board, it’s truly with the intent of driving opportunity for students to get jobs.”

Last year, as an exhibitor at the SAC, Hiler and other Aerotek executives saw firsthand the opportunities available for youth in the fast-growing automotive industry.

“One thing that was very eye opening to me when I was in attendance was the willingness of each organization at the conference — Alabama (AAMA), Georgia (GAMA), Mississippi (MAMA) and Tennessee (TAMA) — to welcome Aerotek,” Hiler says.

Every association made a point of welcoming Aerotek in what he refers to as a “southern fashion,” making a lasting impression on the way professionals in the industry conduct themselves and embrace those interested in learning more about how fast growing this sector is in the South.

“The idea for this started with Aerotek attending last year and understanding what kind of opportunity there was,” Hiler says. “We were able to see what the event was all about as an exhibitor. Our intention is to bring organizations together. As a company, whenever you look at our tagline, it says, ‘Our people are everything.’

“It’s a very bold (phrase) to use and can very easily be turned against you.

But it’s a matter of bringing customers together with potential candidates or future work force. Partnering with SAC

The growth of autonomous vehicles is one of the reasons we have such an interest in developing students’ passion for the automotive field. … Positions we support are anywhere from entry level production jobs, to robotics, to software developers working in the research lab.”—Lucas Hiler to identify this career day achieves what Aerotek wants to achieve — betterment of the potential workforce in our future. That’s our mission and has always been since the founding of our organization. This student day is a prime example of bringing great people and students together.”

Hiler, who went to work with Aerotek when he graduated from college, has always been tied to talent acquisition with the automotive industry. Headquartered in Hanover, Maryland, Aerotek dates back three decades when the company was created to place employees in the aerospace and aviation industry. Today, with 250 offices throughout the U.S. and Canada, Aerotek supports all industries with 18,000 customers and 300,000 contract employees they put to work every year.

“It’s exciting to me personally to bring this to SAC because my passion is in automotive,” Hiler says.

“I’m really looking forward to what this partnership will bring and the opportunity we can give these students.

It could continue to pay off for them 5, 10, even 20 years from now.”

Students who attend the SAC are expected to bring a resume and be prepared to meet future employers.

Applicants for Student Day must be currently enrolled as full-time students, at least 16 years of age, and able to present a valid student ID upon picking up their badge at on-site registration.

Students interested in attending can visit www.southernautocon.com for more information. n FALL 2019 / Southern Automotive Alliance 53

VISION

THE EXPERT

T

Highway fatalities have gone down for the past several years. Dean Sicking’s innovations are largely responsible.

TEXT BY NICK PATTERSON // PHOTOS COURTESY OF: UAB 54 | Southern Automotive Alliance / FALL 2019

here is a test track at Barber Vintage Motorsports and Museum in Birmingham Alabama, set apart from the public areas of the sprawling complex.

At this particular test track, wheeled vehicles that resemble cars are sent speeding along a relatively short stretch of pavement directly toward a barrier with the goal of making sure there’s a crash. There’s often, if not always, a crash test dummy in the driver’s seat.

The point of the effort is to figure out how to make real drivers safer.

Running the program is an acknowledged expert in highway traffic safety innovation: Dean Sicking.

“For more than 30 years, Sicking has been a leading figure in highway safety research. His designs have reshaped guardrails and other roadside barriers throughout the United States,” as noted in an article on the website of the University of Alabama at Birmingham, where Sicking is on the faculty. “He was also one of the developers of the Steel and Foam Energy Reduction (SAFER) barriers that are used on NASCAR and Indy Racing League tracks around the world. In 2012, Sicking joined the UAB School of Engineering as a professor and the vice president of product development.”

In the same article, Sicking describes the impact of his work, which predates his arrival at UAB: “Over the years, we have generated dozens of safety devices, to the point where it’s virtually impossible to drive more than a mile on any major freeway in this country without encountering one of our systems…. Our roadside safety devices save hundreds, if not a thousand, lives per year without getting a whole lot of attention, but when we

build a device that saves one or two racecar drivers, everyone wants to know about it.”

In fact, as noted in a Wikipedia article about Sicking, he holds 30 patents, including, for “the first energy absorbing guardrail terminal, the first crash cushion without sacrificial energy absorbers, the first guardrail capable of containing large SUV’s, a trailer mounted impact attenuator,[6] and NASCAR’s Steel and Foam Energy Reduction (SAFER) barrier.

“These technologies have revolutionized their respective markets.

They have been adopted around the globe and produced major reductions in the number of serious injuries and fatalities along highways and race tracks,” the article notes.

Sicking is a graduate of Texas A&M university with a degree in mechanical engineering. The road from there, to recognized highway traffic safety expert was neither direct nor quick. But it was ironic when you consider how it happened.

“There were 495 mechanical engineers graduating the same day I did, and a fair number of them were like me and engaged to be married to someone who was stuck there,” Sicking says. “So, my wife wanted to go to med school, a solid med school upstate. And so I was anchored to College Station and there just weren’t many jobs around. This was literally the only one I could get in town. I took a job as a research engineer at Texas Transportation Institute.”

Sicking recalls working on whatever tasks were put in front of him at the institute, “because I was a brand new bachelor’s degree and didn’t have a clue what I was doing. So they hired me and trained me, and like all their engineers [I] need to be trained up. And I spent 12 years … trying to get out of this field.”

Even as a young man, Sicking was seeking a challenge. “I had a philosophy of life — I wanted the path of greatest resistance, and so … this area seemed pretty easy to me; it

I’m convinced there are thousands of people whose lives are saved every year because of my designs. ­—­ Dean Sicking was very simple. And I wanted… more challenge. And so I spent twelve years educating myself,” he says. Sicking earned a PhD, and along with it became knowledgeable about damage in airplane wings, including fighter jets.

“When I graduated, the Office of Air Force Research identified my research topic as one of their priorities for the next couple of years,” he says.

“So, armed with that and a PhD from Texas A&M University, I could get a job and do research for the university in aerospace composites. But I didn’t factor in the peace dividend.”

In other words, peacetime means downtime in military spending and development. “The government cancelled every weapons development program underway at the time — every one of them,” he says. “And there were literally hundreds of people in aerospace composite research that had done it for years walking the street because they got laid off by the defense industry.”

He found himself competing for work against people who had many more years of experience than he did.

He thought he had jobs — then for

several reasons, didn’t. Eventually, Sicking reached a sobering conclusion.

“That’s how I came to the realization that the good Lord wanted me to keep working in the automotive safety area.… I finally realized that, if you’re really good at something and you’re good at a job that not everybody is, that may be your calling. And it turned out I found that not everybody could do the stuff we do.… Staying in this field was the best thing that ever happened to me. And I just knew the good Lord’s hand was in it because I gave the best of my efforts to get out of this field and I couldn’t do it.”

In fact, while Sicking was earning his doctorate, becoming an expert in airplane wing composites, he was simultaneously studying highway safety. “When I was doing my coursework, my dissertation… during that whole period I was doing highway safety research, and I had made significant advancements during that period from 1980-1992; I was wellknown in my field. I just didn’t want to be in the field,” he says.

He took a job at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, where the director FALL 2019 / Southern Automotive Alliance 55

VI SI O N

of a research program (the Midwest Roadside Safety Facility) had just died, suddenly, six months into an ongoing project. “So I…in desperation applied for the job and I got it,” Sicking says.

He found the program to be, in his word, “disorganized.”

“The first time I did a crash test

when I was there…they were about ready to start the test and I said, ‘Time out…wait a minute.’ There was a guy standing six feet from the impact zone.

Tow a vehicle up to 60 mph and hit this impact zone the guy is standing six feet away from it. I said that’s not going to happen.”

This example of one of Dean Sicking’s SAFER barriers is the outside wall of the Milwaukee Mile race track. The wall on the right is concrete. The wall on the left is steel box channel. In between are bumpers made of pink foam used in home construction. Photo credit: FreeKee. 56 | Southern Automotive Alliance / FALL 2019

Apparently, as Sicking recalls, the plan was for a researcher to stand near a camera close to the impact zone so he could turn it on to record the test.

Then, when the car was three seconds away from the collision, the researcher was supposed to run to a safer spot.

“I said, ‘I don’t care, we’re not going to do that anymore. Maybe it was the way you’ve been doing it all along, but we’re not going to do that anymore,’” he says.

The reason for the dangerous technique? Cost, apparently, he recalls.

“I said, ‘Well, how much would it cost to have an extension cord on that camera 500 feet?’” The answer came back, ‘That would be a couple thousand dollars!’ And I said, ‘Well, you’re worth a lot more than a couple thousand dollars to me, so we’re going to get one of those before we run this test.’

“And so, anyway, there was a system shock; we were all involved. I was shocked; they were shocked,” he says.

And that wasn’t the only thing he said to take his new colleagues by surprise.

“When I got there, I told them…

‘When I come here, I think we can be number one…in the United States in this research field within ten years,’” he recalls, adding that “jaws hit the floor.”

“And two of them, I know, went out to start looking for a job because they thought I was crazy…. But we learned to work together, and it allowed us to do a lot of good work,” he says. “I spent 20 years in Nebraska.”

He worked with a great team in Nebraska, Sicking says. Within the first 10 years, “we were widely acknowledged as being the leaders in the industry. So, we did achieve our goal,” he says. By 2008, the research program was being asked to provide data for clients and Sicking became responsible for bringing work in.

“People would call us up and say, ‘Can you do some work, some research for us?’ I said, ‘Yes.’ Gave them outrageous bids and they funded them.

“I basically worked my way out of

Staying in this field was the best thing that ever happened to me.

And I just knew the good Lord’s hand was in it because I gave the best of my efforts to get out of this field and I couldn’t do it.

— Dean Sicking

a job because there wasn’t any need for me drumming up more work, and I was sort of sitting on my fingers. My wife says, ‘You’ve got to get out of here.

You’re going crazy. Doing nothing is driving you crazy.’ So, I decided to take on a new challenge and came to Alabama.”

Long before moving to Alabama, though Sicking and his team­—working on a barrier to reduce injuries and fatalities in race car driving in 1998.

By 2000, his team had created a steel barrier for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. After testing it through March 2002, the barrier was deployed for use in May of that year.

A NASCAR official watched one of the crash tests of the Indianapolis barriers. The result left a positive impression; NASCAR had run five crash tests in New Hampshire where there had been two serious high-speed wrecks.

The NASCAR tests up to that point had not gone particularly well, and had even proved dangerous. Seeing what Sicking’s team accomplished in Indianapolis led NASCAR to engage their effort to make their drivers safer.

The Steel And Foam Energy Reduction (SAFER) Barrier has been installed on oval tracks and other high speed sections of road and street tracks.

As noted on the Midwest Roadside Safety Facility website, the SAFER

Barrier “has absorbed more than 50 significant impacts thus far, with outstanding safety performance. Even though some of impacts with the barrier have been extremely severe, no significant driver injuries have occurred. Phil Casey, Senior Technical Director, of the Indy Racing League

has stated that SAFER Barrier is ‘the greatest achievement for safety in automobile racing that’s been made’.”

Sicking’s career in safety innovations didn’t stop there. Over the years, he’s taken on a project to create barriers to make hockey safer for fastmoving players who otherwise might end up hurt by crashing against an unyielding wall. And he’s also looking into improving the safety of football helmets, in an era of increased focus on sports-related head injuries and postconcussion syndrome.

Even so, for now, the automotive realm is where his work has had the most impact, whether in the U.S., Europe, or Australia. He’s working on improvements even now at his test track at Barber Motorsports.

“I’m convinced there are thousands of people whose lives are saved every year because of my designs,” Sicking says. “That makes me feel pretty good.” n

FALL 2019 / Southern Automotive Alliance 57

REGIONAL REPORTS The Georgia Automotive Manufacturers Association, Inc. (GAMA) is a non-profit trade association which passionately promotes the interests of Georgia’s automotive and ground transportation industry. GAMA is a community of businesses with common interests and goals which provides a highly interactive forum to help members achieve the following: • continual improvement in their businesses • higher levels of innovation, quality, and profitability

• professional success through unique educational opportunities • successful networking among customers and peers

• MARCH 12, 2019 - “Critical Issues Regarding OSHA” – held in West Point, Georgia/Lanett, Alabama near the Kia assembly plant in West Point, Georgia

information is always extremely relevant and timely, and includes his views on the economy in general, manufacturing in general, and, of course, the automotive industry in particular.

The meeting is timed to fit well with most companies’ annual budget planning processes. Additional speakers are planned.

• MAY 22, 2019 - “Critical Issues Regarding OSHA” – held in Rome, Georgia

• FEBRUARY 5 OR 6, 2020 - Cybersecurity and the Supply Chain, featuring AIAG – Atlanta area, Georgia

• MAY 7, 2019 - Annual Golf Tournament Benefiting the Southern Automotive Women’s Forum (SAWF) – held at Callaway Gardens in Pine Mountain, Georgia (near Columbus, Georgia)

• APRIL OR MAY, 2020 - Automotive Diversity Meeting

GAMA is off to a very successful start for 2019, and has already confirmed events in 2020:

Events held so far this year include:

• AUGUST 6, 2019 - Tour of Kia Motors Manufacturing Georgia (KMMG) assembly plant in West Point, Georgia

Upcoming events planned: • NOVEMBER 13, 2019 Annual Economic Update/ Technology Meeting featuring Bill Strauss, Senior Economist and Economic Advisor, from the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank.

This will be the eighth time Mr. Strauss has addressed GAMA members and guests - photo attached of Bill Strauss, as well as the Federal Reserve Chicago Logo. Mr. Strauss’

– in planning stages • APRIL 28, 2020 – Annual Golf Tournament Benefiting the Southern Automotive Women’s Forum (SAWF) will be held at Callaway Gardens in Pine Mountain, Georgia GAMA is committed to delivering value-driven events year-round.

For further information, please contact Rick Walker, GAMA President, at rwalker@GAMA-Georgia.org or 770-314-9040.

58 | Southern Automotive Alliance / FALL 2019

AKING THE 12TH ANNUAL SAC A HUGE SUC M R O F U O Y K CESS THAN

TAMA helps Tennessee automotive companies, especially suppliers, react to the challenges of the global automotive marketplace.

TAMA is a membership organization with a mission to strengthen and expand Tennessee’s automotive industry. TAMA’s diverse membership includes OEMs, Tier 1, 2, and 3 suppliers, government agencies, and professional service organizations that have expertise in the automotive industry. Members enjoy access to some of Tennessee’s top automotive executives, strong support from the state’s economic development team, and discounted fees to membership meetings and other TAMA events.

TA M A’ S AN N U A L S P ON S OR S

TAMA is a proud sponsor of the Aluminum USA Aluminum Expo ALUMINUM USA is the leading exhibition and technical conference for aluminum products, technologies and investments in the United States. Bringing the industry together every two years, ALUMINUM USA is the place to be to get a comprehensive overview of the entire aluminum industry.

MUSIC CITY CENTER NASHVILLE, TN USA SEPTEMBER 12-13, 2019

TAMA 2019 BOARD OF DIRECTORS Vice President, Daniel Davidson, Magneti

Victoria Hirschberg, TN Dept. of Economic & Community Development

Treasurer, Lynda Hill, Frost Brown Todd

Bobby Locke, Kasai North America

Dex Battista, Magna International

Michael Monday, Magneti Marelli

Ed Carter, C&S Plastics

Barry Owens, Bridgestone Americas, Inc.

Ryan Fulkerson, Nissan North America

Marius Sipos, Power BtoB

Andre Gist, Manufacturers Industrial Group

Kim Williams, Tenneco

President, Rick Youngblood, TAMA President

To join TAMA, visit www.tennauto.org.

For questions about membership, contact Ashley Frye 615-525-4533 • email: ashley@tennauto.org FALL 2019 / Southern Automotive Alliance 59

REGIONAL REPORTS

Alabama Automotive Manufacturers Association

AAMA’S MISSION is to promote growth and continuous improvement of automotive manufacturing in Alabama.

ALAUTOINDUSTRY.ORG

AUTOMOTIVE MANUFACTURING SCHOLARSHIP

The Scholarship students are pictured here on a map of Alabama with students from each of the seven Workforce Regions across the state.

What is Alabama doing to recruit students into a career in Automotive Manufacturing? Through funding of $200K from the Alabama Legislature, AAMA and the Alabama Community College System (ACCS) have partnered to expand on AAMA’s previous Scholarship Program to offer select high school seniors and community college freshman across the state tuition assistance. The program was designed to build interest in the exciting and rewarding careers the automotive industry offers. The Scholarship Program is facilitated through AAMA, the Board of Directors, the Scholarship Selection Committee and ACCS in support of individuals pursuing a career/technical education

certificate or associate degree in the Alabama Education System, in preparation for a career related to the automotive manufacturing industry. The selection committee is comprised of AAMA Board members, OEM representatives from Alabama companies including Honda Manufacturing, Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Mazda Toyota, Hyundai Motor Manufacturing, and Mercedes-Benz, select suppliers and Alabama Industrial Development Training (AIDT) as well as the Workforce and Economic Development Division of ACCS. In spring 2019, based on designated eligibility criteria, the Scholarship Committee chose 50 scholarship recipients from the state’s high schools and community colleges to receive assistance of $3,600 to offset the cost of tuition, fees and/or books. The available funds are available for two semesters at $1,800 each semester. Students include 39 males,11 females, 30 high school seniors and 20 community college freshmen.

The Automotive Manufacturing Scholarship application, with detailed eligibility information, is located on the ACCS website www.dreamitdoitalabama.com. Applicants must use the scholarship toward one of the following declared majors of study or another automotive-related program: •Automotive Manufacturing Technology •Computer Numerical Control •Engineering or Industrial Electronics Technology •Industrial Maintenance Technology •Injection Molding •Automotive Service Technician, •Logistics •Machine Shop •Precision Tool Technology •Mechanical Design Technology •Mechatronics •Welding Technology As an additional benefit to the scholarship funding, a mentorship component has been implemented. Each student is provided with a volunteer mentor from industry to support them through their educational studies and promote networking relationships. Several companies within the state are providing volunteers and are very involved in the process. Our scholarship students will be recognized at several upcoming AAMA events throughout the year.

Join AAMA today! Start now taking part in Alabama’s dynamic automotive manufacturing association. If you are interested in learning more about AAMA and how you can help advance Alabama’s automotive industry, please visit ALAutoIndustry.org.

Contact: Madison Bosc | 205.201.8682 | madisonaama@gmail.com • Ron Davis | 205.657.5101 60 | Southern Automotive Alliance / FALL 2019

FALL 2019 / Southern Automotive Alliance 61

REGIONAL REPORTS

62 | Southern Automotive Alliance / FALL 2019

FALL 2019 / Southern Automotive Alliance 63

I N D U S T R Y I N D I C AT O R S

SAC 2019 Numbers

Number ofvehicles built per state Source: SAC2019 President’s video

386,000

1,000 ,000

910,000

400,0 00

36 0,0 00

Southeast Auto Stocks Company/Security

Headquarters

Southeast U.S. Operations

Ticker

Exchange

Closing Price 8/15/2019

Closing Price Stock Price Growth 8/15/2018

BMW

Munchen, Germany

SC

BMWYY

OTC

21.75

30.83

-29.45

Ford Motor Co.

Dearborn, Michigan

KY

F

NYSE

8.86

9.45

-6.24

General Motors Co.

Detroit, Michigan

KY, TN, TX

GM

NYSE

36.47

35.94

1.47

Honda Motor Co. Ltd.

Minato, Tokyo, Japan

AL, SC

HMC

NYSE

22.99

29.43

-21.88

Hyundai Motor Co. Ltd.

Seoul, South Korea

AL

HYMLF

OTC

89

120

-25.83

Kia Motors Corp.

Seoul, South Korea

GA

KIMTF

OTC

30.3

30.3

0.00

Mazda Motor Corp.

Hiroshima, Japan

AL

MZDAF

OTC

8.9

11.34

-21.52

Mercedes-Benz (Daimler AG)

Stuttgart, Germany

AL, GA, SC

DDAIF

OTC

45.155

62.75

-28.04

Mitsubishi Motors Corp.

Minato, Tokyo, Japan

KY

MMTOF

OTC

3.96

7.05

-43.83

Nissan Motor Co. Ltd.

Nishi-ku, Yokohama, Japan

MS, TN

NSANF

OTC

6.07

9.23

-34.24

Porsche Automobile Pfd.

Stuttgart, Germany

GA

POAHF

OTC

60.435

60.59

-0.26

Toyota Motor Corp. Ltd. Ord.

Toyota, Aichi, Japan

AL, KY, MS, TX

TM

NYSE

127.36

121.85

4.52

Volkswagen Ag Ord.

Wolfsburg, Germany

TN

VLKAF

OTC

156.84

159.55

-1.70

Volvo AB ADR

Gothenburg, Sweden

SC

VLVLY

OTC

13.17

15.79

-16.59

64 | Southern Automotive Alliance / FALL 2019

BY T H E N U M B E R S

$145

MILLION Investment being made by AutoZone to expand its operations in Memphis, Tennessee. southernautocorridor.com

FIVE NINE Number of upgrades to Toyota’s Huntsville, Alabama engine plant since groundbreaking in 2001. al.com

$5.5

$100

MILLION THREE Value of investment planned by Hitachi Automotive Systems Americas to expand its operations in Walton County, Georgia. usnews.com

2,000 Jobs being created by a new automotive battery plant in Commerce, Georgia planned by South Korea-based SK Innovation Co. autonews.com

Number of vehicle models manufactured in Mississippi. mississippi.org

Number of European automakers operating in South Carolina. autonews.com

$3

BILLION Value of new vehicle sales taxes in Texas in 2017. autoalliance.org

BILLION Value of automotive-related exports from Kentucky in 2018. thinkkentucky.com

50 Jobs being created in connection with expansion of Piston Automotive’s Louisville, Kentucky. operations. lanereport.com

FALL 2019 / Southern Automotive Alliance 65

CAREER NOTES Mazda-Toyota recently announced the arrival of a new communications specialist. TONI EBERHART took on the role Sept. 3. Eberhart joined Mazda Toyota – the in-the-works joint venture between two Japanese automakers in Huntsville, Alabama – from Urban engine where she was the executive director for nearly three years. Urban Engine promotes the Alabama economy by connecting entrpreneurs and other business leaders with educational resources, talent and community assets.

LOU MARTINEZ has been appointed the executive vice president and chief financial officer of Exide Technologies. Martinez will report to Exide Chairman, CEO and President Tim Vargo. Martinez will lead Exide’s global finance, accounting, internal audit, investor relations, treasury and risk management functions, working from the company’s headquarters in Milton, Georgia. Martinez replaces the retiring Tony Genito. Before his recent appointment, Martinez served as Exide’s chief accounting officer and corporate controller. He joined the company in 2005. Prior to that Martinez was corporate controller for AirGate PCS, Cotelligent and Aegis Communications Group. In addition to his corporate responsibilities, Martinez serves on the board of directors for the nonprofit PRISM of Georgia which serves adults with developmental disabilities.

SAAD CHEHAB has been named senior vice president, VW brand marketing.

Volkswagen of America announced the appointment August 14. Chehab will be responsible for marketing and 66 | Southern Automotive Alliance / FALL 2019

will report to Scott Keough, head of VW Group. Chehab, who has 26 years in the automotive industry, goes to VW from his role at Kia Motors America, where he was head of marketing and communications. Before that he was with FCA where he ran global marketing for Maserati after stints at the Chrysler and Lancia units.

Even before that he was director of creative services for Ford after six years designing car dealerships for an architectural firm.

In the same release, VW announced that DERRICK HATAMI, executive vice president for sales and marketing for the VW brand would be leaving the company as would Jim Zabel, senior vice president for VW brand marketing.

Earlier this year, the South Carolina Automotive Council announced that MAX METCALF, the manager of government and community relations at BMW Manufacturing Company as the chairman of the South Carolina Manufacturers Alliance board of directors. A 1986 Clemson University graduate, Metcalf previously served as director of Transportation and Intergovernmental Relations in the office of Governor Carroll A. Campbell, Jr., as district administrator for the ffice of Congressman Bob Inglis, and vice president of Public Policy with the Greater Greenville Chamber of Commerce before joining BMW in 2001. Metcalf also serves on the board of directors for the Greater Greenville Chamber of Commerce, Public Affairs Steering Committee of the National Association of Manufacturers, and the Upstate SC Alliance.

Another automotive executive named to the board during the same election was APRIL ALLEN of Continental Tire, who became SCMA’s first vice chairman.

TIM ISRAEL, has been named director of the Georgia Manufacturing Extension Partnership by the Enterprise Innovation Institute (EI2), Georgia Tech’s economic development arm. Israel, who had been GaMEP’s associate director and group manager of process improvement, will be responsible for the manufacturing resources and regional staff located across Georgia. A 30-year veteran at Georgia Tech, Israel began his career as a project engineer in Tech’s Gainesville Regional Office. He also served as a project manager in Georgia Tech’s Georgia Productivity and Quality Center and the Center for International Standards and Quality. Israel is an expert in lean manufacturing, quality management systems, and supplier development.

Former Mercedes Benz US International controller CHRISTIAN STRUWE, has been appointed vice president and CFO of Mercedes-Benz USA (MBUSA). A Frieburg, Germany native, Struwe leads finance and operations for MBUSA. His responsibilities include overseeing finance and controlling, risk management, treasury, payroll, procurement, information technology, taxes, and facility management. A 22-year employee of Daimler AG companies, Struwe’s most recent post was director of controlling for Mercedes-Benz Cars in Stuttgart, Germany. After starting his career in the associate program with Daimler in Berlin in 1997, his postings have operations at Juiz de Fora (Brazil) and corporate controlling at MBUSI in Vance, near Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

Struwe replaces Harald Henn who left the company for a position with Mercedes-Benz UK. n

Index 2A USA................................................... 15

36,37,38,39,40,41,42

Motus.................................................... 14

AAMA.......................................4, 25, 53 60

Frost Brown Todd................. 20,21,22, 33

NAFTA.............................................. 29, 45

ACCS......................................................... 5

GAMA............................................... 53, 58

NAOS........................................................ 7

Adell Group........................................... 17

Gary Jones.................................................. 13

NASCAR............................................ 55,57

Aerotek...................................... 34, 52,53

Geely...................................................... 18

NHTSA.................................................... 12

AIAG......................................................... 2

General Motors........................................

Nissan................ 19, 36,37,38,39,40,41,42

AIDT....................................................... 22

13, 16, 30, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42

Onin....................................................... 71

Alabama Department of

Gerhardi................................................ 18

Page and Jones..................................... 49

Commerce.................................. 12, 44,45

GMC..............17, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42

Plex........................................................ 70

Alabama Office of Apprenticeship..... 14

Gray Construction................................ 17

Reich...................................................... 23

April Allen................................................... 66

Greg Canfield............................................. 18

S-2..................................................... 46,47

Ashley Frye................................................. 32

Henry McMaster....................................... 16

Saad Chehab............................................. 66

ATN........................................................ 13

Hodges......................................................... 3

SAC 2019...................................... 32,33,34

ATS......................................................... 23

Hollie Pegg............................................44,45

SAWF............................................ 24,25,26

Auburn University............................... 13

Honda........................................................

SCAC....................................................... 61

Autocar.............. 17, 36,37,38,39,40,41,42

12,18,19, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42

Sheila Wardy....................................32,33,34

AutoForm.............................................. 31

Hyundai.....................................................

Southeastern Tool and Design...... 48,50

Automation Personnel Services......... 43

15, 16, 17, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 45

Southern Sky........................................ 51

BCA.......................................................... 4

Javier Diaz.................................................. 19

SSACA........................................... 68,69,70

Bill Lee........................................................ 13

Jeneen Horton...............................24, 25, 26

Staubli................................................... 11

BMW.................. 16, 36,37,38,39,40,41,42

Jennifer Mead.......................................46,47

Stenco......................................................... 69

Borbet.................................................... 27

Jim Dunne.................................................. 14

Systems................................................. 11

Butler Snow.......................................... 51

KAIA/KAM.............................................. 63

TAMA............................................... 53, 59

Calhoun Community College.............. 49

Kia..... 14, 18, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 45

Tesla................................................ 14, 19

CAVS......................................................... 6

Lear........................................................ 17

Tim Israel................................................... 66

Center for Automotive Research.13, 29,30

Lex Taylor................................................... 12

Tommy John.............................................. 13

Chevrolet.............................................. 17

Lou Martinez.............................................. 66

Toni Eberhart............................................. 66

Christian Struwe........................................ 66

Lynda Hill.......................................20, 21, 22

Toyota.......................................................

CRP Industries...................................... 16

MAMA.............................................. 53, 62

12, 13, 24, 25, 26, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42

CSX......................................................... 14

Mark Russ.................................................. 16

Toyota Boshoku............................. 14, 17

DaikyoNishikawa................................. 18

Martinrea International...................... 15

UAB......................................... 54,55,56,57

Daimler.................................................. 16

Mary Barra................................................. 30

UAW..................................13, 15, 28,29,30

Dean Sicking.............................. 54,55,56,57

Max Metcalf............................................... 66

UA.......................................................... 69

Derrick Hatami.......................................... 66

Mazda.................................................... 14

US Department of Commerce............ 15

Dodge.................................................... 15

Mazda Toyota Manufacturing

USMCA......................................... 28,29,30

Donald Trump........12, 14, 16, 18, 28,29,30

USA.......................................14, 15, 16, 18

Volkswagen...............................................

Drake State Community College........ 12

McAbee.................................................. 57

13 , 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42

East Mississippi Community College. 12

Mercedes-Benz.........................................

Volvo.............18, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42

EFC......................................................... 72

16, 18, 19, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42

Vuteq..................................................... 19

Focus Fab.............................................. 43

Minact................................................... 27

ZF............................................................ 16

Ford..........................13, 15, 16, 18, 19, 30,

Motlow State Community College....... 9 FALL 2019 / Southern Automotive Alliance 67

Sponsor Profile

Building Careers That Last

Southern States Automotive Contractors Association makes connections to help the automotive manufacturing industry TEXT AND PHOTOS BY: LAWRENCE ELIZABETH KNOX

W

ith the pressures caused by an uncertain economy, ever-evolving technology, availability and costs of materials, and project deadlines, contractors find little time to build and foster relationships with both existing and potential clients through networking and marketing.

That is where the Southern States Automotive Contractors Association (SSACA) comes into play.

“That’s what we’re about, is trying to create business development opportunities for large contractors,” said Glenn Rex, president of Rex Association Management LLC and executive director of the SSACA. Rex, who is based in Houston, Texas, represents and manages the daily affairs of the association, with a board of directors consisting of President

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Lee Bailey of McAbee Construction Inc, Vice President Chris Ciceri Jr. of International Industrial Contracting Corp. and Secretary-Treasurer Tim Arndt of Colburn Construction Inc. “There’s strength in numbers. Even the biggest companies gain by being exposed to other people’s methods.

Understanding the problem that somebody else has already faced and solved and shared with you can be a real intangible benefit,” he says.

Established in 2016, SSACA provides a platform for collaboration among construction professionals and industry contractors across 11 southern states where the majority of automotive production is concentrated – Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma,

South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas.

The initial meetings were held in Birmingham, where the association was conceptualized with the project execution and construction advisory firm Magnus & Company. Teresa Magnus, the principal consultant of the company, was influential in forming what Rex describes as “a league of contractors oriented around marketing.”

Currently, the SSACA has 13 members, all closely involved in aspects of new plant construction, maintaining and retrofitting existing facilities. Rex and Magnus personally invited most of them to join because of their proven reputation as safe, productive, mobile and highly skilled professionals.

“We identified them as bringing strength to the organization that would make the organization salable to the auto manufacturers and Tier 1 suppliers,” Rex says. “We’re not a nonprofit so we’re quite selective in terms of who we bring in. The members of our association are really the blue-chip specialty contractors in the United States. They can do any kind of work, and they’re preferred contractors in almost every setting.”

These members hire the best labor in the industry, Rex explained, adding that they are searching for additional outlets to provide their staffs with consistent work. Construction is cyclical. A new manufacturing facility can take months or years to construct, depending on its size and location, but once the project is finished, so are the jobs. Service and maintenance, on the other hand, present more reliable, ongoing labor. Consistent employment creates consistent sales, which results in increased gross income and therefore higher net income.

“You can’t have an opportunity, even if it’s a well-paid opportunity, that’s only limited in duration with no promise of anything beyond that,” Rex said. “That’s a

challenge for construction generally.”

Today, the SSACA schedules approximately six meetings a year, half of which are through webinars or conference calls, generating nearly 75 percent member engagement, Rex explained. In the latest gathering, the group continued finalizing plans for the annual Southern Automotive Conference, a three-day premier automotive event featuring networking opportunities and world-class speakers.

As a gold-level SAC sponsor, the SSACA will have a six-booth exhibition pavilion to present its skilled craft labor availability in hopes of attracting construction and maintenance service buyers at top-tier automotive manufacturers, Rex says.

The association will also provide tours of the building’s green features, such as the 191,000-square-foot green roof, which is made of sedum plants and supports a growing bee population.

Conferences like SAC help the SSACA maximize efforts to improve the construction by promoting productive workforce expansion, supporting skillenhancement and leadership training programs, and preserving the highest industry safety and quality standards.

SSACA has been an SAC sponsor for three years, and members have benefitted, Rex said. In 2018, a member, whose company provides demolition services, was introduced to a general contractor, who worked for one of the manufacturers in attendance. That connection immediately parlayed into a job opportunity.

“We have companies from Oklahoma City, Nashville, and the Great Lakes states. They are billion-dollar companies,” he says. “They do hundreds and hundreds of millions of dollars of construction work a year, so it’s not like they aren’t able to market themselves, but this (the SAC) is an avenue into a new segment or niche in the market that all of them would like to be more active in.”

Construction of a big-budget manufacturing facility requires a massive workforce, Rex explained. The jointventure company recently established FALL 2019 / Southern Automotive Alliance 69

P R O F I LE

There’s strength in numbers. Even the biggest companies gain by being exposed to other people’s methods. Understanding the problem that somebody else has already faced and solved and shared with you can be a real intangible benefit.

by Mazda and Toyota, for example, is investing $1.6 billion dollars toward a new assembly plant, slated to open in Huntsville, Alabama in 2021. The facility will be capable of producing 300,000 vehicles a year while creating up to 4,000 jobs.

While the plant will contribute to local economic development, the labor demand of such a project is sure to place strain on the already short workforce supply, according to a report that the SSACA presented at SAC in 2017. For the research, the association hired Construction Industry Resources LLC, a comprehensive provider of construction project labor risk solutions. Relying on data from the Construction Labor Market Analyzer, the survey examines labor availability and career opportunities

70 | Southern Automotive Alliance / FALL 2019

in the automotive manufacturing community.

The results, Rex said, show a labor shortage related to professional development within the industry. As the labor force ages, the need to replenish the number of skilled craft workers who are willing to travel becomes more critical, as does attracting the next generation of employees and with that, more women.

Rex noted that two historically underutilized, women-owned businesses are involved in the SSACA. Deborah Colburn and Vicki Arndt represent Colburn Construction Inc., while Michelle Aristeo Barton and Anne Aristeo Martinelli represent Aristeo Construction.

“Women in construction are a relative rarity,” he says. “It’s a very

male-dominated industry, and so to have women who are actively engaged in major specialty construction companies is quite an achievement, and to have them as part of our group, I think enhances us as an organization,” Rex says.

Another valuable quality that defines the association’s membership, and which Rex believes is attractive to manufacturers, is financial health.

“We’re a little better capitalized maybe than the average specialty contractor out there, and we’re looking to extend the workforce that we have now and to continue to keep them employed so that they do have that career path of opportunity and longevity in the industry,” he says. “Our former President Theodore Roosevelt’s comments were that every man owes something to the maintenance of the industry where he makes his livelihood. I think there’s a lot to that, and as an association executive, I really try to feed that desire to want to give something back.” n

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