Steel and aluminum maker announces expansion, new jobs at Blount facilit

A Japanese auto parts manufacturer is expanding its presence in Blount County by building a new 76,000 square-foot facility and creating 32 new positions.

The Blount Partnership and Koide Tennessee Inc. announced Friday the company is expanding its operations in the Stock Creek Development Technology Park in Rockford with a $10,106,000 investment.

Koide is a worldwide corporation that specializes in precision cut-to-length steel and aluminum tubing used to manufacture anti-vibration devices for the automotive industry. This expansion allows Koide to expand its customer base while increasing productivity for its current clients.

Koide currently employs 67 people on three shifts at its current facility where it operates a high speed cutting and chamfering machine. The new hires include 27 machine operators and five additional office staff.

“Shortly after opening its Blount County operations in 1998, Koide expanded and increased its production capacity in 2001. It has been certified twice by Smithers Quality Assessments in December 2002 and November 2008 for its quality management systems related to design, development and production.

Koide Kokan Co., Ltd., was founded in 1974 in Takamatsu, Kagawa in Japan, and has expanded it operations 10 times. It has offices in Italy, China, Poland, Thailand and Mexico.