Nissan Brings Some Parts Production Back to Australia

Nissan Australia begins local manufacture of vehicle accessories by expanding production at its parts plant in Dandenong, Victoria, Australia.

The auto maker is bringing back to Australia some metal-fabrication work that had been done in Asia, starting with tow bars and later adding sportbars and nudge bars.

Nissan Australia ending outsourcing of nudge-bar production.

The company says the decision is part of its GT2012 and Nissan Power 88 midterm growth plans. GT2012 targets import-market leadership in Australia and Power 88 aims for a global 8% market share and an 8% operating profit.

Nissan initially will build 30,000 tow bars for 4-wheel-drive and passenger vehicles at Dandenong, adding 20 full-time jobs. The auto maker had been buying its tow bars from a local supplier who outsourced production to Asian factories.

Nissan has retooled part of its Dandenong casting facility to make room for the new accessories-fabrication business, spending A$4 million ($3.86 million) in plant and equipment.

Once tow-bar manufacture is fully integrated, Nissan will add production of sportbars for Navara cabs in early 2012, followed in early 2013 by nudge bars, a lightweight alternative to bull bars.

Tony Carraturo, aftersales executive general manager-Nissan Australia, says repatriation of the accessory business is a strong endorsement of the integrity and competitiveness of Australian manufacturing.

“Nissan leads its competitors in volume and revenue from the 4WD accessory business,” Carraturo says in a statement.

“This business restructure plays a major role in positioning Nissan for future growth – our midterm goals of importer-market leadership and an even greater footprint in the 4WD commercial and leisure segments.”

Carraturo says the restructuring gives the auto maker direct influence over critical factors in its growth and development. “We will have more control over lead times, costs and shipping,” he says.

Another significant element in the new business plan is the local sourcing of steel. Previously, Nissan tow bars were made with steel from foreign suppliers. Now, an Australian producer will deliver steel to the Dandenong plant.

This gives Nissan Australia added protection against currency fluctuations and greater security in planning medium-term development.

Nudge bars and sportbars also had been manufactured overseas using foreign metals. Next year, sportbars will be made locally with Australian aluminum and nudge bars will added to the production line 12 months later.

Improved quality also is anticipated, as the plant will use robotics to produce the high-luster finish desired by purchasers of these accessories. Polishing previously was done by hand in offshore supplier factories.

Carraturo says Nissan Australia will perform rigorous tests of its locally fabricated products at its proving ground, exposing tow bars to punishing use and stress.

Next year, the auto maker will open a durability laboratory at the Dandenong plant to oversee quality as production volumes rise.

The facility is in a period of growth, contracting with the parent company in Japan earlier this year to produce aluminum components used in the manufacture of Nissan’s zero-emissions vehicles, including the Leaf electric car.

The factory eventually is expected to produce 22,000 EV components monthly.

Main activities at Dandenong are high-pressure die casting, low-pressure die casting and CNC machining. Opened in 1982, the plant reinvented itself as a stand-alone supplier after Nissan withdrew from local automotive manufacturing in 1991.

This year, the plant will produce almost 2 million aluminum castings, most of them exported to Nissan factories in Japan, Thailand, Mexico and the U.S.

It produces eight core aluminum castings, including transmission housings, clutch housings, cylinder heads and oil-pan assemblies. The Australian castings can be identified by a small kangaroo stamped on the outside of the casing.

The facility operates three shifts six days a week and employs 146 full-time and 26 part-time employees.