Nemak lands Tesla contract, 53 new jobs created

SHEBOYGAN — Nemak has been awarded a contract with Tesla and will add 53 high paying jobs.

Tesla’s electric vehicle project requires a $33 million investment in Sheboygan for equipment and upgrades. The contract is set to last at a minimum through 2027, according to Nemak. To support the contract, the company is adding 43 full-time hourly employees with a minimum annual compensation of around $78,000 as well as 10 salaried employees with an average compensation of $114,500.

The new production lines will be running three shifts per day throughout the work week.

To meet new production needs, the company will be renovating an underutilized warehouse near Weeden Creek Road and Gateway Drive. The warehouse is owned by Fifth Generation Properties, which has ties to the family-owned Jos. Schmitt Construction Company, and is leased to Nemak. The site was formerly an Emissions Testing Facility for the Wisconsin Department of Transportation.

The plans, approved by the City of Sheboygan Plan Commission in August, include building a manufacturing area, constructing a new parking lot for the added production and other improvements. Over the summer, temporary locations were set up in the Sheboygan Business Park to begin bringing in equipment.

Headquartered in Mexico, Nemak is a provider of innovative light weighting solutions for the global automotive industry, specializing in the development and manufacturing of aluminum components for powertrain and body structure applications. In addition to the two Nemak plants in Sheboygan, the company has plants in Alabama, Kentucky and Tennessee. It acquired Sheboygan-based J.L. French in 2012.

Tesla was founded in 2003, the company’s name is a tribute to inventor and electrical engineer Nikola Tesla. In 2004, Elon Musk became the largest shareholder of the company and its chairman. He has served as CEO since 2008. Telsa, headquartered in California, is a manufacturer of electric vehicles, solar panels and batteries.