Carbon fiber maker adds 242 jobs in Oak Ridge
LeMond Composites will begin manufacturing a new type of carbon fiber for the transportation, renewable energy and infrastructure markets in Oak Ridge. The company announced Wednesday it will invest $125 million to expand its Oak Ridge campus by building its first carbon fiber production line at its facility adjacent to Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Carbon Fiber Technology Facility. The new facility will add 242 new jobs.
“We can provide the advantages of our carbon fiber to many industries by improving strength, stiffness and weight reduction,” LeMond’s CEO Connie Jackson said in a statement. “If you imagine replacing steel, aluminum and fiberglass with our carbon fiber, you can begin to understand the scope of the potential market. Our process will have global applications and we are ready to move forward with scaling the technology.”
The breakthrough process invented by Jackson and a research team at ORNL’s Carbon Fiber Technology Facility will significantly reduce production costs. The new carbon fiber has the mechanical properties of carbon fiber, but costs significantly less. Until now, manufacturing carbon fiber was an extremely energy-intensive process. The new method greatly reduces energy consumed during production.
LeMond Composites has secured a licensing agreement with U.S. Department of Energy’s ORNL. The agreement will make LeMond Composites the first company to offer the new industry-disrupting carbon fiber.
Thomas Zacharia, deputy director for science and technology at ORNL, said the successful transition of the technology developed at the lab into commercial operation “demonstrates the Department of Energy’s commitment to invest in scientific research and development to address the nation’s energy challenges and deliver solutions to the marketplace.”
Jackson to head state Chamber
Tennessee’s biggest business advocacy group has tapped its government relations head as its new chief executive officer.
The Tennessee Chamber of Commerce and Industry announced Wednesday that Bradley Jackson has been chosen as the Chamber’s CEO, succeeding Catherine Glover, who stepped down as president earlier this year.
Jackson is a former legislative staffer in Nashville and vice president of public affairs for the statewide Chamber.
“After a number of conversations with elected officials and business leaders across Tennessee, we came to the unanimous conclusion that, based on Bradley’s vision and the respect that he carries with legislative and business leaders, he is the right choice to lead the Chamber long-term,” said Greg Martz, chairman of the Tennessee Chamber.
Established in 1912, the Tennessee Chamber also serves as the Tennessee Manufacturers Association. The Chamber is the official state affiliate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the National Association of Manufacturers, and the American Chemistry Council.
Jim Beam union threatens strike
Whiskey workers at two Jim Beam distilleries in Kentucky have threatened to walk off their jobs as efforts to ratify a new contract soured ahead of a looming deadline at the world’s largest bourbon producer.
Members of the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 111D voted 201-19 on Tuesday in favor of going on strike at Beam distilleries in Clermont and Boston, Tommy Ballard, a UFCW international representative, said Wednesday.
The current contract runs through Friday, and Beam Suntory officials said production continued as usual Wednesday. The classic American whiskey brand is owned by Suntory Holdings Ltd., a Japanese beverage company.
Kentucky is home to about 95 percent of the world’s bourbon production, and both the bourbon and whiskey industries are enjoying growing sales worldwide, in part driven by higher demand for premium spirits and cocktails.
Tesla-Solar City merger vote Nov. 17
Tesla and SolarCity shareholders will meet separately Nov. 17 to decide whether the companies should merge.
SolarCity shareholders will vote in the morning and Tesla shareholders in the afternoon, according to a new securities filing made public Wednesday.
The merger, announced in June and worth about $2.23 billion at current stock values, would combine the electric car company with the nation’s biggest solar roof installer.
Tesla on Wednesday called the deal the “first ever opportunity” to “generate, store and consume energy entirely sustainably, through a suite of integrated products that add aesthetics and function while reducing cost.”
Elon Musk, chief executive at Tesla, chairman at SolarCity and a major investor at both, has painted a vision of attractive solar rooftops feeding energy into home-storage batteries.
Toyota recalls 340,000 Prius cars
TOKYO – Toyota Motor Corp. recalled 340,000 gas-electric hybrid Prius cars around the world Wednesday, 212,000 of them in Japan and 94,000 in North America, for a defect in their parking brakes.
Toyota acknowledged receiving reports of crashes, injuries and deaths. The Japanese automaker refused to provide details, saying it was still looking into the reports.
Toyota said the parking brake cable can disengage unexpectedly, causing the brakes to stop working properly. The problem models were manufactured from August 2015 through October 2016.