Kloeckner Metals opens second location in Mexico; invests 40 million dollars in Querétaro

The US firm  Kloeckner Metals  expanded its presence in Mexico by opening a second location . 

This time in the state of Querétaro, where  it invested 40 million dollars to manufacture products for the automotive industry and the supply of metals for other sectors and will create 200 jobs.

John Ganem, CEO of  Kloeckner Metals , during the inauguration of the plant, explained that one of the reasons why  the company continues to bet on Mexico is because of the opportunity that the market represents.

"Kloeckner Metals, on a global basis, views Mexico as a growth engine for our global strategy. That is why I have spent so much time looking to build relationships in Mexico and want to build for what we believe is a new land of opportunities,” Ganem said.

This new plant will allow it to meet the growing demand from  manufacturers of automobiles, HVAC, household appliances, metal forming stampers, and manufacturers of telecommunications and electronics cabinets , in addition to providing value-added services, expanded processing capabilities, and  just-in-time programs to North American customers.

Kloeckner Metals has been operating in the state of Nuevo León for nearly 20 years. And now in Querétaro, said Roberto Mercado Santos, regional general manager of  Kloeckner Metals , which is a strategic point for the industry, specifically, for the distribution of steel and metals to the national market.

"For Kloeckner, a new era begins, an era of growth, job creation and, above all, expansion for all Mexicans," he said.

The company from Querétaro will generate cold-rolled, galvanized and coated steel products, ultra-high-resistance carbon steel, aluminum and stainless steel.

In addition, it will have 72-inch cutters capable of processing a thickness range from 0.010" to 0.250", with a maximum coil capacity of 80,000 pounds (36,287.39 kilograms), a maximum tensile strength of 261 KSI (1,800 MPa) and a maximum yield strength of 195 KSI (1,300 MPa).

The facility is located in the  O'Donnell Phase V Industrial Park, Querétaro Airport, has an area of ​​84,000 square feet (7,800 square meters) and will benefit from a railway branch dedicated exclusively to the service of  Kansas City Southern de México.

On his occasion, Mauricio Kuri González, governor of Querétaro, assured that the US company will promote innovation, promote competitiveness and improve the industrial capacities of Mexico and the state.

According to Marco Antonio Del Prete Tercero, secretary of  Sustainable Development of the state, in foreign direct investment the manufacture of metal products registered 63 million dollars in 2022, an annual increase of 162%.

The number of companies with US capital, he highlighted, increased in the state by accounting for 542 companies, 32% of the total number of foreign firms in the state.

In addition to the 25 investment projects that have been completed in the state in the first five months (for an amount of more than 15,212 million pesos), five of them from the United States, for 3,729 million pesos and the generation of 1,621 jobs .

In 2022, he added, Querétaro received an investment of 290 million dollars from the United States in 2022.