Johnson Controls, 240 East Rd, Bennington, VT 05201, US

Established in 1988 as a joint venture between NSK and Torrington Ingersoll-Rand, NSK Steering Systems America, or NSSA, is a wholly owned subsidiary of NSK Americas and has come from modest beginnings as a 50 person employer into a worldwide alliance with the engineering and manufacturing expertise to provide advanced steering column solutions worldwide. As one of southern Vermont s largest manufacturing employers with approximately 500 team members, the company received its QS-9000 quality system certification, the start up of its first contract with the Ford Motor Company and the production of nearly 2 million steering columns in 1999. The company is one of the world s largest manufacturers of electrically assisted power steering systems that are used primarily in Japan and Europe. NSK Steering Systems America is headquartered in Bennington, Vt.