Shape Corporation of America to open its first European plant in Plzen

10 Jan. 2011 | CzechInvest, Shape Corporation | The company will seek employees and suppliers in the region.

The American company Shape Corporation will open its first European plant for manufacturing automobile impact energy management systems and other structural rollformed assemblies in Plzeň – Skvrňany. Shape Corporation will also seek production employees, as well suppliers in the areas of the automotive industry, logistics and packaging services in the Plzeň region. The first production line will begin operating in January 2011; full operation will start a year later, when 125 employees should work there.

“In the past year and a half Plzeň and its surroundings have frequently been the destination for new investment projects from abroad. The region’s advantage lies in its very close proximity to Europe’s biggest market, Germany, and perfect infrastructure in the form of high-quality motorway connections and prepared business properties. Together with an abundance of skilled workers with much lower wage demands than those found a few tens of kilometres to the west, this is truly an outstanding starting position in negotiations with foreign investors,” explains Miroslav Křížek, CEO of CzechInvest.

Shape Corporation chose the Czech Republic due to the country’s location in the heart of Europe, its industrial past and the abundance of workers with experience in the automotive industry. The new plant will be opened in January 2011 in the Skvrňany suburb of Plzeň. “We decided for Plzeň due to its strategic location and proximity to markets in western Europe, where many of our customers operate,” explains Mark White, Vice President – European Operations. “No later than by 2012 we want to employ 125 new workers there in production positions and in the firm’s management,” he adds.

Shape will have a capacity of approximately four million manufactured parts per year. Production will involve the use of state-of-the-art technologies for which the company has developed. “We have developed several unique designs and process technologies allowing us to form ultra high-strength steels into complex shapes. This manufacturing technology is a key competitive advantage that has allowed Shape Corporation to become a world leader in automotive impact energy management applications. In addition to advanced rollforming, we will have special forming, bending and robotic welding operations in our new plant in Plzeň,” says Mark White, Vice President – European Operations.

In cooperation with CzechInvest, Shape Corporation is in the process of selecting for the new plant suppliers of pressed metal parts, plastic injection-moulded components, cataphoresis painting, packaging and logistics services, as well as suppliers of tools, forms, measuring instruments and other accessories for the production line. Firms from the region will be given priority. “Shape requested that we mediate contacts to possible suppliers in Plzeň and its surrounding area. We selected suitable firms from the unique supplier database which CzechInvest created and is continually updating. At this time, personal meetings are being held with companies whose product profile corresponds to the investor’s needs,” says Křížek.

About Shape Corporation:

Shape Corp. is a global leader in impact energy management systems and advanced custom roll forming and is North America‘s top automotive bumper manufacturer. Shape also supplies the office furniture, agricultural, recreational and healthcare industries. As the world’s leading full-service bumper systems supplier providing design, engineering, testing, manufacturing, roll forming and more, Shape offers innovative, lightweight, high quality and cost-effective solutions for an ever-changing global marketplace. Shape has 14 offices, eight manufacturing facilities plus six manufacturing alliances, two tech centers and a fitness facility throughout the U.S., China, Japan, Mexico, India and Germany with headquarters in Grand Haven, Mich. Founded in 1974, Shape is privately owned and has five sister companies and over 1,300 associates.