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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowA Subaru supplier announced Wednesday it will expand its operations in Hamilton County and create as many as 32 jobs by 2017.
Moriden America makes cargo systems and interior trim for the auto industry and plans to ramp up production to meet demand from a Subaru assembly plant in Lafayette.
Moriden currently employs 37 at its plant at 9760 Mayflower Park Drive in Carmel.
“Locating in Indiana allows us access to a broad base of customers within close proximity to our facility,” said Sumio Imori, vice president of Moriden America, said in a statement released by the Indiana Economic Development Corp. “We will be able to grow our business and utilize our new equipment to full capacity."
The company, a subsidiary of Japan-based Moriden Company Limited, will install structural reaction injection molding machines over the next two years and use it to produce cargo systems for Subaru models that launch through 2018—including the new Subaru Impreza.
Production of that model is slated to begin later this year at SIA in Lafayette, which is Subaru’s only manufacturing facility in the U.S. SIA has invested $1.3 billion over the past four years and has added 1,300 jobs since last November to increase its production capacity and prepare to build the new Impreza.
“Today Hoosiers across the state are witnessing the impact of Subaru’s significant commitment to growing in Indiana,” Gov. Mike Pence said in a statement. “In addition to creating more than 1,000 new jobs in Lafayette, Subaru’s growth has a ripple effect on its suppliers, including Moriden America.”
Founded in 1910, Moriden established its U.S. subsidiary in 1989 in Detroit before moving all North American operations to Indiana the following year. In 2015, the company moved into its current 130,000-square-foot facility.
The IEDC offered Moriden up to $225,000 in conditional tax credits and up to $50,000 in training grants based on the company’s job creation plans. The incentives are performance-based, meaning until Hoosiers are hired, the company is not eligible to claim incentives.
Moriden is currently hiring for production and quality control positions, with plans to add additional second-shift production positions next year.
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