Dura automotive

This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated. MUSCLE SHOALS, Ala. — The press and local government officials were able to tour the inside of the DUURA Automotive plant in Muscle Shoals Friday morning. The company broke ground on the plant in August, leasing an existing building in the Muscle Shoals Research Airpark. Nearly 300 jobs are expected as the plant begins its hiring process in May. The Michigan-based company will produce EV battery trays for electric vehicles. “This is basically nine months of hard work and I think everybody knows how hard the last 12 months have been for everybody in general but imagine building a facility during the COVID pandemic and what’s gone on,” Carl Beckwith, DURA Automotive CEO said. “It means just a lot for us to be here with the community; we appreciate the support we’ve received locally and appreciate everything the team has done to make this successful.” Officials did not give a date on when the plant will open but the hiring process is expected to continue over the next year. To apply,

Europe represents Dura-Shiloh’s largest market segment. Since 1999 we have manufactured our complete portfolio of products for the world’s top automotive brands. Dura-Shiloh sites span Czech Republic, France, Germany, Poland, Portugal, Sweden, Republic of North Macedonia, Romania, and United Kingdom. Dura-Shiloh’s most recent European expansions include state-of-the-art EV battery enclosure facilities in Strakonice, Czech Republic, and Skopje, Republic of North Macedonia.

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WAFF) - DURA Automotive Systems plans to invest $59 million to open a new manufacturing facility in Muscle Shoals that will produce battery trays for electric vehicles. The Michigan-based company said the project will create 279 direct jobs and expand the potential for Alabama’s auto industry to capitalize on the growing EV wave. “I’m very excited to see DURA Automotive Systems make a significant investment in Alabama and create career opportunities for our hard-working citizens in the Shoals,” Governor Kay Ivey said. “DURA is a great addition to the network of world-class auto suppliers that is spreading across Sweet Home Alabama.” Under the terms of the project, DURA will invest $59 million in manufacturing equipment and will lease an existing building in the Shoals Research Airpark. “This investment represents Dura’s commitment to support global customers in the transition to electrified, high performance vehicles,” said Kimberly Rodriguez, DURA Chief Executive Officer. “We are delighted to extend our well-established European expertise in design and manufacturing of lightweight structural architectures to the North American market.” “This project is the culmination of a lot of hard work and vision from our community leadership. They had the forethought to invest in infrastructure and assets to allow the Shoals to compete for projects on a global scale,” SEDA President Kevin Jackson said. “It’s because of them and the exceptional workforce of the Shoal...

Lexington, KY–August 5, 2020: MiddleGround Capital announced today that it has acquired majority ownership of Dura Automotive Systems from Bardin Hill Investment Partners. This is MiddleGround’s sixth platform acquisition made from its first fund, which closed in August 2019. Dura is a global designer and manufacturer of highly engineered automotive systems. It operates through its mechatronics, lightweight structures and exterior trim segments, making products such as shift-by-wire actuators, advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS), electric vehicle (BEV) battery trays, mechatronic control systems and aluminum roof rails. Dura supplies leading automotive OEMs and Tier one partners worldwide, with a presence on more than 300 platforms across all light vehicle and powertrain types. MiddleGround partner John Stewart, who spent 18 years of his career at Toyota Motor Company, stated, “We have been searching for an opportunity to invest in a business as well-positioned as Dura to capitalize on the most disruptive trends in the automotive industry. From today’s focus on electrification of the powertrain and vehicle lightweighting to some of the longer-term shifts toward autonomous driving and connected car, Dura is and will continue to be a driving force in an industry undergoing major transformation. We are delighted to support Dura on its journey.” “Dura’s engineering capabilities have made it a key supplier to its customer base for many decades. We are excited to further Du...

The 200,000-square-foot facility is expected to employ more than 270 full-time workers at peak production, with an estimated investment of $75 million. It will supply lightweight aluminum EV battery enclosures to the Mercedes-Benz electric battery assembly plant in Bibb County. “It has been 25 years since Mercedes-Benz helped launch our automotive industry, and in that time, Alabama has grown to become a national leader in vehicle exports,” Governor Ivey said. “I’m incredibly excited to welcome Dura Automotive Systems to Alabama’s booming automotive industry, and I look forward to seeing this company continue to grow in our great state,” she added. The Alabama facility is Dura’s most recent addition to a growing family of worldwide sites and home to the company’s first lightweight structures investment in North America. The premier site is designed to support the rapid production of luxury electric vehicles planned throughout the next decade. The high-tech manufacturing processes at Dura’s Alabama facility will utilize advanced robotics and proprietary forming and joining technologies to create lightweight structures used for EV battery systems. “This milestone event celebrates our continued partnership with customers to accelerate the transition to electrified, high-performance vehicles,” Dura CEO Carl Beckwith said. “On behalf of Dura and our investors, I extend appreciation to our employees, Mercedes-Benz, and the many individuals in the government and supply base that ...

Global – Plasman announces our recent acquisition of Dura Automotive – Exterior Trim Division (“Dura”), a tier-one automotive designing and manufacturing company with locations in Lawrenceburg, Tennessee, Queretaro, Mexico, Carregado, Portugal and Strakonice, Czech Republic. The adopted facilities were previously operating under the advanced exterior trim division of Dura Automotive, a company that is owned by MiddleGround Capital which also owns Plasman. This is the fifth acquisition by Plasman since 2015 and expands our global operations to 21 manufacturing sites worldwide. “Adding these four additional exterior trim manufacturing locations to our impressive list of capabilities is a testament to the outstanding team we have assembled, and the rapid scale of our business,” explained Dave Wiskel, Plasman President and CEO. These new sites will expand Plasman’s product line to include window assemblies and regulators, door frames, and roof rail systems. It will also add Ford, Merecedes Benz and Audi to Plasman’s customer list with upcoming product launches in 2022 and 2023. We are extremely excited about the potential this unlocks for Plasman in the years to come. Each plant specializes in exterior trim application that aligns with our current capabilities, experience, and expertise.

DETROIT -- After emerging from bankruptcy in late May, longtime supplier Dura Automotive once again has new owners. Lexington, Ky.-based private equity firm MiddleGround Capital acquired a majority stake in the body systems supplier from Bardin Hill Investment Partners. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but according to MiddleGround's website, the firm's investments range from $75 million to $250 million. According to a press release, two of Middleground's partners are Toyota Motor Corp. veterans. “We have been searching for an opportunity to invest in a business as well-positioned as Dura to capitalize on the most disruptive trends in the automotive industry," partner John Stewart said in a statement. Stewart spent 18 years at Toyota. "From today’s focus on electrification of the powertrain and vehicle lightweighting to some of the longer-term shifts toward autonomous driving and connected car, Dura is and will continue to be a driving force in an industry undergoing major transformation. We are delighted to support Dura on its journey.” Detroit area private equity firm The Charlton Group Inc. is a minority owner of Dura in the deal. Kimberly Rodriguez, a longtime auto industry turnaround consultant and current CEO of Andra Rush's trucking empire Rush Trucking, was named Dura's CEO, the company said in a press release. Her appointment is effective Sept. 1. Rodriguez Employees at Dura were informed of the deal and the incoming CEO Thursday morning. The deal marks the t...

MUSCLE SHOALS, Ala. (WAFF) - Hundreds of manufacturing jobs are on the way to Northwest Alabama. DURA Automotive Systems is opening a $60 million facility in Muscle Shoals and the company is almost ready to open its doors. The facility will produce battery trays for electric vehicles. The battery trays will help Alabama’s auto industry capitalize on the growing electric vehicle wave. “So we’re bringing high tech jobs and we’re bringing skills that people can gain and carry with them for the rest of their life, but we’re also investing in sustainability. If you look at what electric cars are, they are a part of the sustainability movement and the future so we’re bringing that as part of the community I think it adds something that we know is a long future. It’s the way the automotive industry will go over time so I think we’re bringing that stability and something special here to the community,” said DURA CEO Carl Beckwith. Right now, the building is empty, but just in a few months, there will be $60 million worth of capital investment equipment in the building. “We received our first piece of equipment actually this week so you actually see the fruit of our labor coming together. We know as we start to ramp up production we need to bring in those skilled jobs and bring in those skilled people,” said Beckwith. The hiring process is in phases. About 80 people will be hired in May. By next year, nearly 250 will be added. “So it’s an exciting time for us because we know the he...

Scot Duncan, Partner The automotive industry is going through an era of drastic transformation with the advent of connected vehicles, ride-sharing (multi-modal mobility), autonomous and electric vehicles. Although the transformation has brought in a host of opportunities for companies, many of the traditional players—the legacy OEMs and tiered suppliers—are finding it challenging to adopt new technologies and business structures. These changes often impact their research and innovation areas, manufacturing modalities, and resource consumption patterns as it requires a huge capital investment. On top of it, the ongoing pandemic situation is forcing automotive players to halt their investment towards innovations and digital transformation for sustaining themselves. The story of DURA, a renowned global automotive supplier, was not different. Operating as a global automotive supplier, DURA is recognized by leading vehicle manufacturers as the preferred supplier partner for innovative, highly integrated, mechatronic systems and lightweight solutions. Over the last few years, the company has invested heavily to become a significant player in the evolution of mobility and enable superior performance and value creation through its cutting edge technology. DURA even acquired huge contracts from automotive OEMs. Still, as the next step in their growth trajectory, DURA realized a need to invest over $180 million over the next 24 months to deliver the new upgraded products. That’s whe...