Marelli, a leading global Tier 1 automotive supplier, announced it will open a greenfield manufacturing plant in Bowling Green, Ohio, to support new business for the company’s Interiors Unit. The facility will bring approximately 75 new jobs to the region, with construction expected to be complete in early 2021.
“There are many factors that go in to building a business case for a new site,” said Chris Bradford, regional head of interiors at Marelli. “Our key considerations were affordability, proximity to customers, quality of the local workforce, and the opportunity to expand. The state of Ohio, Wood County, and ultimately the city of Bowling Green checked all the boxes for us. The location strengthens our delivery position with automotive OEMs in Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Ontario, Canada.”
At the outset, planned operations will occupy 50 percent of the available 100,000-square-foot space. The facility will include manufacturing, assembly and warehousing operations to support two new bulkhead programs. A bulkhead is a structural portion of the vehicle that provides attachment locations for headlamps, the radiator and the hood latch. Marelli will hire approximately 75 employees to support production of more than 760,000 components per year. The company says it continues to quote new customer programs that, if won, would bring additional employment to the area.
Marelli said it considered alternate locations in Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, and Ontario, Canada, before settling on Bowling Green. The company worked closely with Northwest Ohio’s Regional Growth Partnership and JobsOhio on site selection and incentive packaging. These organizations provided unmatched support throughout the decision-making process.
“Marelli is a globally successful auto supplier with many options on where to invest, and it chose Ohio,” said J.P. Nauseef, JobsOhio president and CIO. “The decision to build this new facility and create 75 new jobs in Bowling Green demonstrates the confidence Marelli has in the region’s talent, and the optimism we share for future growth in Ohio.”
