NTN Driveshaft Adding 500+ Jobs in Indiana

NTN Driveshaft Inc. and its Japan-based parent company NTN Corporation will grow their Indiana operations, establishing a new manufacturing plant in Anderson, IN that is expected to ultimately create up to 510 new jobs.

NTN-driveshaft-Indiana
(Credit: Joel Philippsen | The Republic)

“Despite several recent expansions, our manufacturing plant in Columbus has exceeded capacity due to growth in the automotive industry and the resulting needs of our customers,” said Jim Riggs, president of NTN Driveshaft. “After conducting an exhaustive multi-state search, we selected Indiana for this new facility because of its business-friendly climate and policies, the availability of skilled labor and the strong Hoosier work ethic. Thanks to the coordination of support from the city of Anderson and the state, we are confident that this expansion will drive the success of NTN forward for years to come.”

The company will invest more than $87 million to establish NTN Driveshaft Anderson, constructing and equipping a new 406,596-square-foot facility at 7625 S. Layton Rd., just west of the Nestle USA plant. The new plant will complement NTN Driveshaft’s existing 1 million-square-foot facility in Columbus, increasing production of drive shafts – a component used to transmit torque and rotation – for the automotive industry. NTN Driveshaft Anderson broke ground on the facility in mid-November and expects to be operational by April 2017.

NTN Corporation, which was established in Osaka, Japan, in 1918, is a global manufacturer of mechanical parts and equipment, such as bearings, drive shafts and production equipment serving customers in the transportation sector. The company established NTN Driveshaft in Columbus in 1990 and NTK Precision Axle in Frankfort in 2004, which together employ more than 1,600 Hoosiers.

The Indiana Economic Development Corporation offered NTN Driveshaft Anderson Inc. up to $4,700,000 in conditional tax credits and up to $300,000 in training grants based on the company’s job creation plans. These incentives are performance-based, meaning until employees are hired, the company is not eligible to claim incentives. The city of Anderson has approved additional incentives as well as utility and infrastructure improvements to serve NTN Driveshaft Anderson and to support current and future Flagship Enterprise Park companies.

“Today’s announcement further solidifies Indiana as the best state in the nation for business and for advanced manufacturing,” said Governor Mike Pence. “Indiana continues to boast the highest concentration of private sector manufacturing jobs in the nation because of our efforts to support businesses by cutting taxes, reducing burdensome regulations and investing in our growing workforce. NTN – both in Japan and here locally – has been a great partner of the state for the past 25 years, and I am proud that they have once again chosen Indiana to create even more quality jobs for Hoosiers.”

Among all U.S. states, Indiana has the largest amount of Japanese investment per capita with more than 250 Japan-owned companies doing business in Indiana and supporting more than 52,000 Hoosier jobs. NTN Driveshaft is the fifth Japan-based company to announce expansion plans in Indiana this fall, joining Indiana Packers Corporation, Toyota Tsusho, Subaru of Indiana Automotive, and Daiei. Together, these companies plan to create more than 1,800 new jobs and invest more than $316 million in their Indiana operations.