DIAMOND BAR, Calif. (Aug. 19, 2015) — Nexen Tire Corp. has confirmed that it plans to build a new R&D center in Richfield, Ohio, in the Akron area.
Kyle Roberts, director of marketing for Diamond Bar-based Nexen Tire America Inc., told Tire Business the company has no prepared statement on the project, but he confirmed the accuracy of a report on the center published Aug. 14 in the Akron Beacon Journal. That story said Nexen has outgrown the technology center it opened in 2008 in Richfield and will build a new, larger facility elsewhere in the village, with an expected groundbreaking either by year-end or in early 2016.
The South Korean tire maker has inked a contract to purchase land in Richfield, according to Don Lee, the current facility's director of technology, who added that the $7 million project — including $4.6 million for the building and the rest for land and other expenses — is expected to take from nine to 11 months to be completed.