Toray Advanced Composites, an advanced manufacturing company with headquarters in Morgan Hill, is planning to expand its local plant operations in order to meet a growing demand for its products, according to the company.
Plans include a 74,000-square-foot expansion of Toray’s local campus, located at 18255 Sutter Blvd.
“We’re growing our operations to meet the demand for quality advanced composites,” said Scott Unger, Managing Director, USA, Global CTO. “This addition to our Toray facilities in Morgan Hill will dramatically increase capacity for aerospace, urban air mobility, defense, commercial and industrial markets worldwide.”
The City of Morgan Hill’s Economic Development department staff said Toray’s expansion will use an existing vacant building next to their current headquarters. The expansion project will require only “modest” improvements, and is expected to be complete by the end of this year, according to Morgan Hill Economic Development Manager Matt Mahood.
The expansion will add to Toray’s existing 142,419 square foot campus, and add 100 jobs to the company’s Morgan Hill workforce, according to the city. The local plant currently employs about 250 people.
“Toray’s expansion demonstrates the strength of Morgan Hill’s advanced manufacturing sector and the confidence a local employer has in expanding here locally,” Mahood said.
The “accelerated” expansion at the Morgan Hill location will assist Toray’s worldwide efforts to improve support for its thermoset and Cetex thermoplastic production and supply chain readiness—and increase the company’s laboratory capacities “in preparation for the surging market demand for materials,” says a press release from Toray Advanced Composites. Those global efforts include additional carbon fiber and advanced composite manufacturing units at other locations.
Toray Advanced Composites is a leading supplier to the aerospace industry. Their products can be found on nearly every satellite and launch vehicle produced in the Western world, says a press release from the City of Morgan Hill.
The original company, called TenCate Advanced Composites, was founded in The Netherlands in 1972. They opened their Morgan Hill manufacturing facility in 2000, and doubled in size in less than 10 years. TenCate Advanced Composites was acquired by Japan-based company Toray Industries Inc. in 2018. Today, Toray operates in 29 countries/regions and employs nearly 7,000 employees worldwide, says the city’s press release.
