NTN Corp. (Japan) is moving forward with another greenfield manufacturing facility in Japan, dedicated to production of large, high precision bearings, primarily for wind turbines and construction equipment.

It will operate under a new company name, NTN Houdatsu Shimizu Corporation, reflecting its location in Houdatsu Shimizu-cho, Hakui, in Ishikawa Prefecture.

Scheduled to break ground in June and be completed by October 2009, the facility will have manufacturing floorspace covering 20,000 square meters. It will start with approximately 100 employees, but then will, "expand to become the core of the extra large size bearing business, one of NTN's strategic products."

This new plant is a sister facility to one completed in mid-2007, NTN Hakui Corp., also in Hakui, Ishikawa Prefecture. That facility is the result of a unique three-way joint venture formed with Marubeni-Itochu Steel and Kurita Inabe Corp. NTN contributed and owns 80%, Marubeni-Itochu 14%, and Kurita Inabe 6%. It is primarily involved in producing finished turned components rather than complete bearings.

NTN owns 100% of the new Ishikawa plant. In addition to the existing Hakui component facility, it will back up the company's older large bearing factory, Kuwana Works, which has also been straining at capacity.

In all, NTN said it expects to spend at least $80 million building out NTN Houdatsu Shimizu.

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