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Area Development - Site Selection, Facility Planning and Workforce Development

UACJ Automotive Whitehall Industries Establishes Flagstaff, Arizona, Manufacturing Plant

03/12/2021
UACJ Automotive Whitehall Industries, a leading supplier of precision extruded aluminum automotive components and assemblies, will take over the former Walgreen’s distribution center in Flagstaff, Arizona. The facility will manufacture parts for electric vehicles.

The roughly $60 million project is expected to bring 120 high-paying jobs to the region over the next year and 350 within 5 years. The company will begin retrofitting a portion of Walgreen's building and is expected to begin operations in April.

“Northern Arizona makes sense for us because of location, ease of transportation, and an already well-established manufacturing sector within the community. We also look forward to partnering with North Arizona University as our processes are highly automated and technical,” said UACJ President and COO David Cooper. And noted that Flagstaff was selected because it is strategically located to serve the company’s electric vehicle customers. UACJ has plants in Ludington, Michigan, Paducah, Kentucky and San Miguel de Allende, Mexico.

Whitehall Industries began in 1974 manufacturing precision components for the copying and printing industry. It began aluminum extrusion operations for the auto industry in 2001. In 2016 it was acquired by UACJ Corporation, a Japanese-based aluminum manufacturer.

“Today’s announcement represents a historic investment for Northern Arizona and our entire state,” said Sandra Watson, President & CEO of the Arizona Commerce Authority. “As an industry-leading producer of electric vehicle parts, UACJ Whitehall will further bolster Arizona’s reputation as a global hub for electric vehicle manufacturing. We look forward to supporting UACJ Whitehall’s growth and success in our state.”

A business attraction “core strike team” of the City of Flagstaff, Kinney Construction Services, Coconino County, the Arizona Commerce Authority and ECoNA had been working to bring the company to Flagstaff over the past five months, said Economic Collaborative of Northern Arizona President & CEO Gail Jackson.

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