Sage Automotive Interiors

Sage Automotive Interiors is a portfolio company of Asahi Kasei [1] and a global supplier of technical textiles for the automotive industry. The company develops and produces automotive interior surfaces such as seating, door panels and automobile headliners that are used in cars, trucks, SUVs and minivans.

Sage Automotive Interiors
TypePrivately-held
IndustryAutomotive Interiors
FoundedOctober 4, 2009 (2009-10-04) in Spartanburg, South Carolina, United States as a carve out of Milliken & Company's Automotive Division
Headquarters
Clemson University International Center for Automotive Research, Greenville, South Carolina
,
United States
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
Dirk Pieper, CEO; Paige Reed, CFO; John Lowrance, VP- Global Operations
ProductsAutomotive Seats, Automotive Headliners, Automotive Door Panels
BrandsYES Essentials, FXC, Dinamica
Services
  • Yarn Processing
  • Weaving
  • Warp Knitting
  • Circular Knitting
  • Washing & Dyeing
  • Surface Finishing
  • Lamination
Websitewww.sageautomotiveinteriors.com

Sage Automotive Interiors specializes in eco-friendly[2] fabric design, engineering and manufacturing. With corporate headquarters located on the campus of Clemson University International Center for Automotive Research in Greenville, South Carolina USA, Sage operates 22 design and support facilities in 18 countries, with plants in North America, Brazil, China, Japan, India, Thailand, Europe and Korea, and employees over 2,000 people.[3]

History

Sage Automotive Interiors was established in 1948 as Milliken Automotive Division.[4] In the 1970s, the company became the first supplier to develop double-needle bar fabrics, acquiring Chrysler as a new U.S. customer and launching an export business with Japanese automakers Honda and Toyota. In 1984–85, the company began producing fabrics in North America for Honda and Toyota.[5]

Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Milliken Automotive Division opened two new manufacturing facilities and added Nissan and Hyundai as customers. In 1996, the company opened a facility in Brazil and added Fiat and Volkswagen to its customer list.[6]

Sage Automotive Interiors was officially established in 2009 by former Milliken & Co. executives.[7] Throughout the 2000s, Sage invested in new technology for yarn manufacturing, texturing, knitting, coating and face finishing, and in 2011, invested in weaving technology that allowed Sage to expand into the automotive headliners market.[8] In 2013, Sage established a location in China, acquired a facility in Poland and opened a facility in Mexico. And in 2014, Sage expanded into the premium seating market.[9] In 2018, Sage was acquired by Asahi Kasei.[10]

References
  1. "Asahi Kasei to acquire Sage Automotive Interiors | Press Releases | Asahi Kasei". Asahi Kasei Corporation. Retrieved 2019-05-23.
  2. "The Gores Group", Wikipedia, 2019-03-22, retrieved 2019-05-23
  3. "SAGE Automotive Interiors expanding Abbeville County operations | South Carolina Department of Commerce". www.sccommerce.com. Retrieved 2019-05-23.
  4. "Sage Automotive Interiors Created from Former Milliken Automotive Division". www.businesswire.com. 2009-09-15. Retrieved 2019-05-23.
  5. Trotter, Stephanie (2017-11-06). "Spinning Success". Southern Automotive Alliance. Retrieved 2019-05-23.
  6. Trotter, Stephanie (2017-11-06). "Spinning Success". Southern Automotive Alliance. Retrieved 2019-05-24.
  7. "Textile giant Milliken prepares to quit autos". Automotive News. 2009-09-09. Retrieved 2019-05-23.
  8. "Sage Automotive Interiors buys Apollo's auto portfolio". Upstate Business Journal. 2016-10-26. Retrieved 2019-05-23.
  9. "Sage Automotive Interiors enters luxury segment". The Greenville News. Retrieved 2019-05-23.
  10. "Asahi Kasei to acquire Sage Automotive Interiors | Press Releases | Asahi Kasei". Asahi Kasei Corporation. Retrieved 2019-05-23.
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