Tier One automotive parts producer Dana Holding Corporation plans to build a new gearmaking plant in Thailand, to open next year and produce up to 600,000 gear sets annually. Ohio-based Dana noted the new plant in Rayong, Thailand, would supply gear sets for its Spicer axle products distributed throughout Southeast Asia.
The value of the capital investment was not indicated.
Dana supplies axles and driveshafts to automakers in the region, including Ford, Mazda, Nissan, Suzuki, and Tata. The company has three plants already in Thailand, employing 650 people, it stated. Approximately 125 new jobs will be established with the new manufacturing plant, the company projected.
The Spicer product line includes axles and driveshafts for commercial vehicles, light trucks, off-highway vehicles, and industrial engines. Specific products include universal joints, driveshaft assemblies, steering shafts, end fittings, wing and center bearings, and end yokes, among various others.
As for gearing, Dana develops its 3-axis gearing technologies in the U.S., and manufactures the products from heat treated steel using face hobbing, shot peening, lapping, and coating.
"Dana is committed to delivering differentiated innovations for growth markets such as Thailand," according to Mark Wallace, president of Dana Light Vehicle Driveline Technologies. "By expanding our gear development and manufacturing capabilities in the region, Dana will deliver programs more efficiently, and be equipped to handle projected market growth."
