Over 1,300 employees of Nissan Motor Manufacturing Corporation U.S.A celebrated last June as President and Chief Executive Officer Marvin Runyon drove the company's first U.S.-manufactured truck off the line in Job 1 ceremonies at the new Tennessee facility.

The completion of Job 1, a 1983½ Nissan truck model with white exterior and blue interior, signals the beginning of production for the operation, the first U.S. manufacturing venture for Nissan Motor Co., Ltd.

Not only is the facility a first for Nissan, it is also the largest automotive facility ever built by a foreign manufacturer in the United States. Further, it is the site of the corporate headquarters of Nissan Motor Manufacturing Corp. U.S.A., located on a 782-acre site in Smyrna, TN, about 15 miles southeast of Nashville. The facility represents an investment of over $660 million, Nissan's largest investment outside of Japan, and the largest investment to date by a Japanese company in the United States.

Nissan announced its decision to manufacture in the U.S. in April 1980, selected the site in Smyrna on October 30 of the same year, and ground was broken on the site in February 1981. Albert Kahn Associates, Inc., an architectural/engineering firm in Detroit, designed the facility, and Daniel Construction Co. of Greenville, SC, was the general contractor. The plant includes stamping, body assembly, paint, and final assembly areas, administrative offices, and several service buildings. It has a total under-roof area of 72 acres, including a storage area for finished vehicles, vehicle test facility, and training center for employees.

The facility began production of light trucks last June, and according to Nissan, off-line production volume is slated to start at six vehicles per day. Production will steadily increase to reach a plateau of 7,500 vehicles per month by late November, and by mid-1984 it is hoped to accelerate to the peak of one-shift production of 10,000 vehicles per month. Nissan will begin production with two-wheel-drive vehicles, and other models will be introduced to support accelerating volume requirements. Four-wheel-drive vehicles will be launched in October of this year and heavy duty and California Vehicles in January of next year.

Nearly 400 employees were trained in Japan for the operation prior to the start-up, and a further hiring and training program was set up by Nissan in conjunction with the State of Tennessee. The plant will ultimately employ over 2,000 workers earning an estimated payroll of about $90 million.

The plant is the third automotive manufacturing facility Nissan has built outside Japan, joining others in Mexico and Australia. In addition, Nissan Motor Company Ltd., has over 50 percent equity participation in a vehicle manufacturing plant in Spain, and in Italy manufactures cars in a joint venture with Volkswagenwerk, A.G., Nissan will produce the Volkswagen Santana in Japan in late 1983. The Nissan Plant in Tennessee represents the company's seventh American investment, with other operations including motor vehicle distribution, importation of industrial and textile machinery, an industrial design organization, and an engineering and research institute.

At the opening ceremonies of the Tennessee facility last June, Runyon announced that the Job 1 truck, first off-the-line, would be placed on permanent loan to the Tennessee State Museum in Nashville after Nissan's grand opening and dedication activities in October. The truck will become part of the Museum's "Made in Tennessee" collection.

 

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