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Manufacturing and Distribution American Honda Motor Company announced in 2000 that it would build a $400 million vehicle assembly and engine plant in Talladega County, just 30 miles east of Birmingham. The company will produce 12,000 vehicles and engines annually and employ at least 1,500 at the operation. Also in 2000, Mercedes-Benz U.S. announced plans to double its Vance, Alabama, production site located just 30 miles west of Birmingham. The $600 million project will add 2,000 jobs at Mercedes' operations and double its production capability to 160,000 vehicles a year. Six suppliers to Mercedes have located plants in central Alabama, all within an hour's drive of Birmingham. In 1997, Ogihara American began operating out of a $70 million, 280,000 square feet plant in the City of Birmingham, employing more than 226 workers making body panels. Ogihara has recently undergone a $10 million expansion, hiring an additional 130 workers. In 1999, the area's 1,200 manufactures employed 51,483 workers. Contributing to this increase were 88 new and expanding industries providing 8,600 new jobs and capital investment of $153.1 million. Eight new manufacturers moved into the area, bringing 355 jobs and a $45 million capital investment. The area absorbed 1.8 million square feet of free-standing industrial building space, achieving a 95% occupancy rate for the total 95 million square feet of industrial buildings. Cast iron pipe and other foundry operations continue to flourish in the area, led by American Cast Iron Pipe Company (ACIPCO), the largest plant of its type under one roof in the world, and U.S. Pipe (Jim Walter Corp.). More than half of the cast iron pipe manufactured in the U.S. is produced in Birmingham, which is also a center for wrought iron furniture production. Amerex Corporation is the world's largest manufacturer of industrial and commercial fire extinguishers. The company has been marketing internationally since 1975. Birmingham's multitude of manufacturers produce fabricated metal products, paint, apparel, electronics, chemical, office furniture, containers, paper products, truck bodies, plastics, processed food products, air craft components, machinery, aerial lift equipment, pet food, building products and fire extinguishers. The City of Birmingham administers a 10,000 acre state enterprise zone, which includes many industrial areas. |