Crew partners with AEP on stadium
Connection includes naming rights for primary gate
Columbus-based electricity giant American Electric Power will have its name on the new Crew Stadium, but it won’t be the stadium’s official naming rights partner.
AEP and the Columbus Crew announced a multiyear partnership on Monday that makes one of the nation’s largest power companies the official partner for the southeast entrance of the new stadium, located at Astor Park on Nationwide Boulevard.
The Crew estimated 80% of fans who attend games will enter the new stadium, which opens July 3, through the southeast entrance. The club released renderings that show what the AEP name looks like above the entrance. The length and cost of the deal between the Crew and AEP was not disclosed.
Lack of support from local businesses was one of the key reasons ex-owner Anthony Precourt cited for his desire to move the team to Austin, Texas, in 2017.
assembly expertise and enhanced our customer diversification to include Honda of America.”
Johnson said the Marion facility has 210 employees and ships parts to Honda plants in Ohio, Indiana and Canada. Vehicles the plant helps create include the Honda Accord, Civic, CRV and Insight, as well as the Acura ILX, RDX, TLX and MDX. Auto parts often include the front and rear steering knuckle assemblies, console panel and the wheel hub assembly.
Recently, Piston Group worked with Honda to supply parts for the 2021 Acura TLX, which debuted in September.
Now the automaker and supplier are working on the Acura MDX, the flagship of Honda’s luxury brand.
The MDX and the TLX are built exclusively in Ohio.
“During development, they (suppliers) play a key role in designing the assembly line, which includes a lot of automation as well as labor to do the assembly,” said Bob Zabor, the department manager for North American Automotive Purchasing at Honda of America.
“They work with our engineers here to make sure they are doing that according to our specifications, but it’s really up to them to execute that line so it’s ready for mass production.”
In addition, Piston Group is responsible for managing the supply chain for other auto parts. Zabor said it might not be parts the company manufactures but those that are assembled into the final product.