Industrial Manufacturing Leads U.S. Southeast in First-Quarter Project Starts

Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--The U.S. manufacturing sector has expressed optimism for the future, and nowhere is this more apparent than in the U.S. Southeast market region, where the Industrial Manufacturing Industry leads in terms of project value for first-quarter 2019 project starts. Out of $8.3 billion in planned project kickoffs, the Industrial Manufacturing sector accounts for more than $4 billion worth. The Southeast market region includes Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Puerto Rico, Tennessee and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Click on the image at right for a breakdown by industry of planned first-quarter 2019 industrial project starts in the U.S. Southeast market region.

In a recent survey, the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) (Washington, D.C.) found that an average of 92.4% of manufacturers have a positive outlook for their businesses--the highest annual average in 20 years of the survey. NAM Chief Executive Officer Jay Timmons said, "Empowered by tax reform and regulatory certainty, manufacturers are keeping our promise to expand our operations, hire new workers and raise wages and benefits."

Among the top Industrial Manufacturing projects planned to kick off in the Southeast in the first quarter is Phase I of SK Innovation Company Limited's (Seoul, South Korea) lithium ion battery manufacturing plant. The two-phase project is being constructed on a 332-acre site in Commerce, Georgia. Phase I will include a 1 million-square-foot building to manufacture up to 4.9 gigawatt-hours per year of lithium ion batteries for the automotive industry. Phase I of the project has an estimated total investment value (TIV) of $970 million and will take about two years to complete. Construction of Phase II could kick off in 2020 and be completed in early 2022. For more information, see Industrial Info's project reports on Phase I and Phase II.

In Clarksville, Tennessee, Hankook Tire America Corporation (Clarksville) plans to begin Phase II construction at its high-end performance radial tire manufacturing plant. Phase II will double the manufacturing facility's size to 1.5 million square feet and allow for the production of 5.5 million tires annually to be used on Toyota Camry and Honda Accord model cars. I.C. Thomasson Associates Incorporated (Nashville, Tennessee) is performing design engineering on the project, which has an estimated TIV of $400 million. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

In Smyrna, Tennessee, Nissan North America Incorporated (Smyrna) plans to begin an equipment addition project at its 5.9 million-square-foot automobile assembly plant, which manufactures 640,000 autos per year. The new equipment includes a laser brazing welding system, a paint line, and tooling and calibration equipment to support the production of the 2019 Nissan Altima sedan. Construction is expected to wrap up by the end of the third quarter. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

The Power Industry, with more than $1.2 billion in planned first-quarter project starts in the region, ranks second in terms of project value. Solar power projects dominate spending. Among these is First Solar Incorporated's (NASDAQ:FSLR) (Tempe, Arizona) planned solar farm in Colbert County, Alabama. The project is being constructed on more than 1,000 acres and will have a generating capacity of 227 megawatts (MW). Construction on the $150 million project will take about a year. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

Also on the books is Silicon Ranch Corporation's (Nashville) 102.5-MW solar farm to be constructed in Early County, Georgia. The $100 million project is expected to be completed by the end of the year and will supply Facebook Incorporated's (NASDAQ:FB) (Menlo Park, California) data center in Stanton Springs, Georgia, which is expected to begin operating in 2020. For more information, see Industrial Info's project reports on the solar farm and data center.

Among the other large project starts planned for the region is Nucor Corporation's (NYSE:NUE) (Charlotte, North Carolina) grassroot steel rebar micro mill in Frostproof, Florida. The 256,000-square-foot mill will produce up to 350,000 tons per year of steel rebar. Construction is expected to begin soon and take about a year to complete. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report and December 28, 2018, article - Industrial Info Tracks $9.45 Billion in 2019 U.S. Steel Mill Capital Project Kickoffs.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, six offices in North America and 12 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle™, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities. Follow IIR on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn. For more information on our coverage, send inquiries to info@industrialinfo.com or visit us online at http://www.industrialinfo.com.