Hiring for plant could begin soon

Facts about glass manufacturing today in Ohio

Major glass making companies in Ohio include Anchor-Hocking Glass Corp., Owens-Illinois Inc., Owens Corning, Johns Manville, Serigraphie Richford Inc., and Pilkington North America.

* Jobs in the auto parts glass segment including windshields were 3,377 in 2008. By 2012, jobs had slipped to 3,145.

*Overall glass and glass product manufacturing employment in Ohio has dived from 13,609 in 2000 to 7,643 in 2012.

Hiring for the 2015 opening of the Fuyao Glass Industry Group Co. could begin as soon as May of this year and the hiring of production workers could begin by the end of the year, said company Chairman Cao Dewang Friday.

Cao, who spoke along with Ohio Gov. John Kasich at an announcement in Columbus Friday, said hiring a management team would be the first order of business followed by the hiring of other workers including production workers at the end of 2014.

Production at the plant could begin in June 2015. Cao, speaking through a translator, added that as an entrepreneur he understands the importance of highly qualified workers.

“I have decided to come here but my success and the future of the company depends on you so let’s work together,” Cao said.

As it stands, the jobs expected to come to Moraine will be a wide variety of occupations common to a top-level supplier to the U.S auto industry, experts say.

Those familiar with the company’s plans said they expect up to 800 jobs representing production, management, engineering, quality control, forklift operators, maintenance and repair and other occupations required to run a large industrial plant.

The number of additional jobs offers a significant increase in a key area of the supply chain in Ohio - glass product manufacturing for automobiles including windshields. Jobs in that field were 3,377 in 2008. By 2012, it had slipped to 3,145.

Overall, auto and auto-related industries employed 143,161 in Ohio in 2012, down from 163,542 in 2008.

At its employment peak, GM employed more than 4,000 workers at its Moraine plant, assembling trucks and SUVs in three shifts. When the automaker left the site in December 2008, only about 1,100 workers were still there on one shift.

The company hasn’t provided a lot of details on compensation yet, nor have company officials had a lengthy discussion with county job services representatives about lining up new employees.

But county officials are standing by to assist, said Heath MacAlpine, Assistant Director for Workforce Development for the Montgomery County Department of Job and Family Services.

The Department is prepared to help Fuyao with recruitment, assessing job candidates, posting jobs and other work. “A lot depends on what the company needs and how to best complement the efforts they want to make,” he said.

The company has told county officials that jobs to be created would yield a $25 million annual payroll at an average annual salary of $32,000 to $35,000.

Fuyao, which will produce windshields for motor vehicles, is known as a Tier One automobile supplier. That means that what’s produced at the plant will go directly into automobiles being assembled. Plans are for plant operations to begin in late 2015.

At Sinclair Community College, officials there are working to learn more about the project to better meet the company’s needs.

“It is very exciting to see a new anchor company move into the facility in Moraine and we are extremely excited to work with our regional partners to supply the workforce they will demand,” Sinclair Vice-President for Workforce Development and Corporate Services Deb Norris said. “The expected needs in the areas of quality control and industrial maintenance in particular are strengths for Sinclair and for the Dayton region.”

Given lingering unemployment levels, the jobs are a welcome addition to the economy, MacAlpine said.

For the Dayton Metro Statistical Area that includes Montgomery, Greene, Miami and Preble counties, the civilian labor force was 402,700. Those with jobs numbered 372,600, the unemployed were 30,100. The unemployment rate was 7.5 percent.

“We look forward to working with the company and putting more people back to work,” MacAlpine said.

Figures for the month of November, the most recent available, show the Montgomery County civilian labor force at 252,000. Those with jobs numbered 232,500 and there were 19,500 unemployed for an unemployment rate of 7.7 percent.