Nokian Tyres announced Wednesday the company will double its tire production capabilities by investing $174.1 million to expand operations at its Dayton facility.
Nokian Tyres, which opened its first U.S. factory in Dayton in 2019, will create an additional 75 new jobs in Rhea County, increasing its total headcount in Southeast Tennessee to approximately 475 people.
With the additional employment and construction of a 600,000-square-foot tire warehouse, Nokian Tyres will strengthen the company’s nine-warehouse network across the U.S. and Canada by reaching full production capacity of up to four million tires per year by 2024.
Hiring at the Dayton factory will begin in March.
Founded in Finland, Nokian Tyres develops, manufactures and distributes its premium tires worldwide with operations in Europe, North America and Asia. Since establishing a presence in Rhea County three years ago, Nokian Tyres will have invested more than $400 million and created 475 new jobs in Tennessee once this expansion is complete.
Governor Bill Lee said, “Tennessee’s business climate and unmatched workforce continue to attract world-class brands to the Volunteer State. These 75 new jobs will greatly benefit Tennesseans in Rhea County and across the region for years to come, and I thank Nokian Tyres for placing its confidence in Tennessee.”
Nokian Tyres will create 75 new jobs at its Dayton, Tennessee factory in 2023, as the company aims to double tire capacity at the award-winning facility. The company celebrated the start of the capacity expansion, which also includes an on-site storage warehouse, at an event on Wednesday with state, local and company officials.
Starting pay ranges from $17 to $21 per hour.
“As demand for our tires grows in the United States and Canada, our expanded Dayton Factory will supply customers with a rising number of safe, sustainable all-season and all-weather products,” said Nokian Tyres Vice President of Sales Tommi Heinonen. “We are happy to see the factory provide more jobs for North American workers and more tires for North American drivers.”
“We strive to be an employer of choice in Southeast Tennessee, and that has been our focus since day one of our operations,” said Dayton Factory Operations Director David Korda. “As we grow, we’re excited about providing fulfilling opportunities for professional growth that will also help our factory and company grow.”
“Nokian Tyres has been a valued partner to the State of Tennessee since 2019, and today’s announcement is proof that our state’s workforce and business-friendly climate are clear advantages when recruiting global companies to Tennessee,” said Tennessee Commissioner of Economic and Community Development Stuart McWhorter. “We believe Dayton and Rhea County will continue to be the ideal location for this company’s growth and future success.”
The factory set production records with existing equipment in 2022, and the company has begun installing additional infrastructure inside the factory to meet its goal of producing up to four million tires per year – a milestone it plans to reach in 2024. The company makes all-season and all-weather tires at the facility, which is the epicenter of its growth plan in North America. The expansion will enable Nokian Tyres to add light truck tires to the Dayton Factory’s product mix in 2023.
In its first three years of operations in Dayton, the company has earned recognition for its workplace culture, operations and sustainability. Nokian Tyres was the Chattanooga Regional Manufacturers Association’s Company of the Year in 2021, and the company was the first in Rhea County to receive the prestigious Tennessee Governor’s Environmental Stewardship Award.
“Nokian Tyres is such a great fit for this community, and we’re excited to be a part of their journey,” said Rhea County Executive Jim Vincent. “This expansion proves that Nokian Tyres is deeply invested in this community, and we are pleased to have them as part of our Rhea County family.”
The Dayton Factory’s production building is the only tire production facility in the world to possess LEED v4 Silver certification, and its LEED v4 Gold-certified administration building is fully powered by energy generated from onsite solar panels.