Mubea Expanding Kentucky Manufacturing Operations

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Researched by Industrialinfo.com (Industrial Information Resources Incorporated, Houston, Texas). Mubea Incorporated (Daaden, Germany & Florence, Kentucky), a manufacturer of automotive transmission disc springs and hose clamps, has announced that it will expand its Kentucky manufacturing operations in a new joint venture with Chuo Precision Springs (Glasgow, Kentucky), a subsidiary of Chuo Spring Limited (Nagoya, Japan).

Mike Lubbers, Director of Finance for Mubea, said in an interview the company has purchased an additional 13 acres behind two existing plants, on which it will build a new manufacturing facility in 2003, with a second new plant to be built in early 2005. Mubea expects to spend approximately $35-$40 million on the new expansion. Construction on the first expansion project is expected to begin mid-2003, with completion by the end of the year. The second facility has a tentative construction date of early 2005.

Mubea has chosen B.L. Spiller Construction, Incorporated (Erlanger, Kentucky) as design build contractor. Construction bids have already gone out on the first phase of the project.

Mubea has three manufacturing operations in Boone and Kenton Counties, Kentucky. It also operates a joint venture company by the name of IT Spring Wire LLC, with Neturen USA (Florence, Kentucky), a subsidiary of Neturen Company Limited (Tokyo, Japan). Mubea claims to provide 60-65 percent of all hose clamps used in the U.S. automotive market.