As head of the site selection team, he began the search for the new plant s location in early 1998 with 100 locations in the southeastern United States. Muyama quickly narrowed the list to 60, then to 30 locations in Virginia, Kentucky and Tennessee. Available, skilled labor and excellent transportation. As an auto parts supplier, Koyo s new plant would have to have easy access to both Detroit and the growing Southern Auto Corridor. Any person coming from Japan would find it very easy to live and work here.
People are kind and very cooperative.
Workers skills are good, and I was impressed with the safety, he says, referring to the Roanoke Valley s low violent crime rate, almost 60 percent below the national average. Metalsa Roanoke, Vishay Vitramon, Yokohama Tire and Virginia Forge all have plants here. Altec Industries new plant is under construction. And just months before Muyama s visit, Dynax America, a subsidiary of the Japanese auto-parts supplier Dynax Corp., began operating its first U.S. plant in the Roanoke Valley. The Roanoke Valley has become especially popular among companies in the transportation industry because of our central location and excellent market access, says Phil Sparks, executive director of the Roanoke Valley Economic Development Partnership , the region s industrial marketing and recruitment agency.