Kumho Tire Company, Inc., a manufacturer of tires for the automotive market and motor sports, will locate its first U.S. manufacturing facility in Macon, Georgia, creating at least 450 new jobs. The Korean-based company will invest US$225 million to build a new plant that will increase supply to U.S. auto manufacturing sectors. Construction on the 1.3 million-square-foot facility is scheduled to begin by May of this year, with initial production slated for October 2009. "The U.S. is the home of the automobile industry and the largest tire market in the world. Kumho Tire can reduce its freight costs and increase market share in the U.S. by having a manufacturing plant here in Georgia," says Sae Chul Oh, Ph.D., the company's president and CEO.