Automotive News Canada - February 2024 - 12

12
* FEBRUARY 2024
Windsor begins to feel NextStar's gravity
The new StellantisLG
battery plant is
pulling in suppliers,
but that was to be
expected, said
the city's mayor
By GREG LAYSON
DIGITAL AND MOBILE EDITOR
PARTS MAKER BOBAEK C&S
from South Korea will build a
$35-million factory in Windsor,
Ont., to supply components to battery
plants across North America.
Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens
called the project " integral " to the
$5-billion NextStar Energy batBobaek
America Inc. President
Jae-Hwa Moon, left, and
Ontario Minister of Economic
Development Vic Fedeli break
ground in December at the
supplier's new factory in
Windsor, Ont., that will provide
battery-insulation panels for
electric vehicles.
PHOTO: GREG LAYSON
tery-cell plant jointly owned by Stellantis and LG
Energy Solution, under construction in the southwestern
Ontario city bordering Detroit.
Former Invest WindsorEssex CEO Stephen
MacKenzie, who helped land the new investment,
said the factory, owned by subsidiary Bobaek
America Inc., will manufacture insulation panels
to be used in the batteries made for a variety of
automakers' electric vehicles assembled in North
America.
" Within a 200-mile radius [of Windsor] there are 11
battery plants being built, " MacKenzie said during a
news conference Dec. 11. " So, it makes us a key place
to consider because the Stellantis-NextStar plant
attracted [suppliers] here and got us on their radar.
" But that overall binational growth is an incredible
benefit to add to that. "
MacKenzie left Invest WindsorEssex for a new role
with the University of Windsor on Feb. 19.
INVESTMENT LEADS TO OTHER INVESTMENT
Dilkens said the new link in the EV supply chain
shouldn't come as a surprise.
" Our geography plays a key role in cementing
the battery factory, and with the support of the
province and the federal government,
to cement that bedrock, is
leading to all this other investment, "
he said. " And LG told
us in a conversation after they
announced the battery factory
and 2,500 jobs, 'get ready because
there's probably at least 1,500
other jobs in the supply chain
that will follow us.' "
Bobaek's investment is the
company's first in the North
American EV supply chain and
will create 144 jobs in the region.
The 71,000-square-foot
(6,600-square-metre) factory, adjacent
to the NextStar plant, is
expected to open in June.
" The plant's output should be
able to cover the entire North
American market, " said Dongio
Seo, president of Bobaek C&S
Headquarters, in a joint statement with the province.
During the news conference, Bobaek committed
to a second phase of growth.
ATTRACTING MULTINATIONAL COMPANIES
The government of Ontario is providing $1.5 million
in funding for the project, through the Regional
Development Program's Southwestern Ontario
Development Fund.
" Our government continues to build up Ontario's
auto and manufacturing sectors by creating the right
conditions to attract multinational companies, "
Minister of Economic Development Vic Fedeli said in
the statement.
He called the facility " a critical link in building
our end-to-end EV and battery supply chain. "
Bobaek began as a supplier to and development
partner of LG Electronics and its LCD TVs. Hyundai
is among the auto companies it now supplies.
" In a border city like ours, we are competing
directly with ... jurisdictions in Michigan, Ohio,
Indiana, Kentucky, " Dilkens said. " I've seen all of
the proposals and now we actually have the tools
and resources of the province supporting us to be
able to land these businesses. " - ANC
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JAMI SMITH
A PLAN FOR EVERY SHOW AND
A CHECKLIST FOR EVERY PLAN
IT TAKES EFFORT TO PUT
on a successful event, and coordination
is key. At Kia Canada,
this falls to Experiential
Marketing Manager Jami
Smith.
She works out of Kia's head
office in Mississauga, Ont., and
her responsibilities include
auto shows, consumer driving
events, national dealer meetings
and sponsorships.
" I have a lot of
checklists, " she
said, adding that
she works with
both outside agencies
and internal
company teams.
" For an auto
show, that's ordering
the cars,
arranging transportation,
working
with the display
company
where I place the
cars on the floor
plan. I'm responsible
for the setup of
the show. "
Smith, who
earned a bachelor
of commerce
degree, always
enjoyed planning
events. Her
father's trucking
er experience at Mitsubishi
Motors Sales of Canada in
Mississauga, Ont., looks after
the hotlines for customer relations,
and for
dealers calling
for warranty
and
parts.
" It's
seven agents
in-house, and
I monitor our
service level
to make sure we answer all
customer and dealer calls within
60 seconds, " he said. " Our
service level is currently at 91
per cent and I'm proud of that
stat. " A second goal is for the
agent to finish the
call to the customer's
satisfaction
within five minutes.
Methé,
43,
wanted to work in
construction and
studied civil engineering.
Jami
Smith is
responsible for Kia's
setup at auto shows.
" That's ordering
the cars, arranging
transportation, working
with the display
company where I place
the cars on the floor
plan. " PHOTO: KIA CANADA
company sponsored a race team,
" and I would have loved to work
with a professional team. It
didn't happen, but it opened the
doors into automotive. "
Smith, 47, joined Hyundai
in 1999 as a marketing analyst.
" There was no website, and my
main role was to get one up and
running, " she said. Later she
moved into event planning.
She left in 2006 to start a family
and " in 2018, it was time to
get back in the working world. "
She was hired by a heritage
park to book tours and
events until it closed during the
COVID-19 pandemic.
In 2021, she joined Kia as a
brand marketing specialist. She
moved into experiential marketing
a year later as a supervisor
and was promoted to her current
manager role in February
2023.
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" I'm very detail-oriented
and organized, " she said. " You
have to be in a role like this. I
have at least eight notebooks
on my desk, one for each project,
because you have to know
what's going on everywhere at
all times. At the start of every
week, I see what I have to
accomplish and I get it done. "
JOEL METHÉ
KEEPING DEALERS HAPPY
MINUTE BY MINUTE
ONE MINUTE ISN'T LONG,
but it seems like an eternity
when waiting for a company
to answer its phone. Joel
Methé, manager of custom " Out
of school,
I was a surveyor
for a blasting
company in northern
Ontario, but
the mines went
on strike and I
was unemployed.
My sister lived
in Toronto and I
moved there. "
He took a job
in customer relations
at Ford
Canada's call centre.
" It
was supposed to be temporary
while I found something
in my field, but I started
to enjoy it and I learned a lot, "
he said.
Within a year, at age 22, he
was supervising a team of 30
people. When that centre relocated,
he joined BMW in customer
service.
He moved to Mitsubishi in
2009 as a customer relations
coordinator. After a short stint
away, he
rejoined in
2014 as an
aftermarket
sales
specialist
and then
became district
parts
and service
manager.
He took his
current role
in 2020.
" My
Joel Methé
insists on
customers
having their
calls answered
promptly and
with a personal
touch.
PHOTO:
MITSUBISHI
MOTORS CANADA
experience
in different
companies
and
roles helps
me guide
the people
I manage, "
he said. " I don't like it when we
use template responses because
customers pick up on that. I
challenge the team to add personality,
to answer professionally
and politely. Mitsubishi is
a small company with a very
good work environment and
respect for everyone. " - ANC
https://www.joeverde.com/Video-Joe-Verde-Automotive-News-4.html?sc=13120
Automotive News Canada - February 2024

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