UL/CUL-listed retractile, curly, and coiled power cords engineered in North Branford, Connecticut and shipped to Tennessee automotive, EV and battery, medical-device, appliance, food-processing, and logistics manufacturers since 1947. Direct factory pricing, no minimum order quantity, custom builds in 4–6 weeks — roughly two business days by ground from our Connecticut dock.
Tennessee manufacturers source retractile, curly, and coiled cords from Autac because we sell direct from the same Connecticut factory where every cord is engineered, jacketed, heat-set, and tested — no distributor markup, no surprise lead times, no imported-container delays. From vehicle assembly drops at Nissan in Smyrna to electric Cadillac and EV-battery lines at General Motors in Spring Hill, from orthopedic-implant cleanrooms at Smith & Nephew in Memphis to F-150 Lightning and battery production at Ford's BlueOval City in Stanton, Autac cordage shows up on Tennessee OEM bills of materials because it is built to spec, listed for compliance, and shipped on a schedule you can plan around — about two business days by ground.
No distributor markup. Tennessee buyers talk to engineering and place orders directly with our Connecticut manufacturing team.
400+ stock catalog part numbers with full lot traceability. TOSHA-recognized listings and documentation for Tennessee OEM audits.
The only 100% woman-owned UL-listed retractile cord manufacturer in the industry. Counts toward diversity-spend targets at large Tennessee OEMs.
Prototype runs as small as one piece — ideal for Tennessee's EV, battery, and automotive-tooling programs. Same factory team handles pilots and production volumes.
Tennessee has become one of the strongest manufacturing economies in the Southeast, with five distinct clusters that all generate steady demand for industrial retractile, curly, and coiled cordage. Automotive and EV assembly anchors Middle Tennessee and Chattanooga, and is expanding fast into West Tennessee. Medical-device manufacturing concentrates around Memphis, one of the largest orthopedic-device clusters in the world. Appliance and electrical-equipment production is spread across the Cumberland and East Tennessee corridors. Food and beverage processing runs statewide, from Chattanooga to the Nashville basin. And Memphis is the global center of air-cargo logistics. Each cluster carries its own engineering requirements — current rating, jacket compound, flex life, shielding, environmental exposure — and the Autac product line maps directly to all five.
Tennessee is the top vehicle-producing state in the Southeast and a national leader in EV manufacturing. Nissan runs its high-volume North American assembly plant in Smyrna, where it builds the Rogue, Pathfinder, Murano, and LEAF, plus an engine plant in Decherd. General Motors assembles electric Cadillacs and operates an Ultium battery joint venture in Spring Hill. Volkswagen builds the all-electric ID.4 and the Atlas in Chattanooga. Ford's BlueOval City in Stanton produces electric trucks and batteries, and LG Energy Solution is building a battery plant in Clarksville. Tier-1 suppliers and tooling shops feed all of them. Automotive and battery manufacturing share a common engineering challenge: durable, traceable power and signal delivery to assembly drops, weld cells, test stands, and inspection stations that must satisfy IATF 16949 and OEM PPAP/FAI requirements.
Typical Tennessee applications in this segment:
Recommended Autac products: TPR-jacketed retractile cords in 14 AWG and 12 AWG, 3-conductor / 15A configurations cover most assembly-line drops; custom retracted lengths from 18" to 36" are standard. Step up to 10 AWG / 20A for higher-current battery-assembly and test-stand applications. TPR and Auta-Prene jackets resist the cutting fluids, coolants, and battery-electrolyte residues common in EV production. Browse the Retractile Cords hub for stock high-current configurations, or use the Build Your Cord tool to specify a custom configuration for your line.
The Memphis region is one of the largest orthopedic-device clusters on earth. Smith & Nephew builds hip, knee, and trauma implants in Memphis. Medtronic's spinal division operates a major Memphis campus. MicroPort Orthopedics develops and manufactures reconstructive implants in Arlington, and Stryker (which acquired Memphis-based Wright Medical) continues extremity and biologics operations in the region. Medical-device manufacturing carries its own constraints: ISO Class 7 and Class 8 cleanroom controls, sterilization-compatible jacket compounds, FDA Design History File traceability, and biocompatibility documentation.
Typical Tennessee applications in this segment:
Recommended Autac products: Our Auta-Prene thermoset rubber and TPR jacket compounds resist the cleaning and sterilization chemistries common in medical manufacturing. For signal applications, 18 AWG and 16 AWG shielded retractile and curly configurations support millions of flex cycles. Browse Curly Cords for high-flex signal builds and Coiled Cords for shielded multi-conductor configurations. Lot traceability documentation is available for FDA Design History File submissions.
Tennessee is one of the top household-appliance and electrical-equipment manufacturing states in the country. Electrolux builds electric and gas ranges in Springfield. LG Electronics manufactures washing machines in Clarksville. Whirlpool operates a large premium-cooking appliance plant in Cleveland. Eastman Chemical anchors specialty-materials production in Kingsport, and Hankook Tire runs a high-volume plant in Clarksville. These operations run high-throughput assembly, molding, and finishing lines that demand cordage rated for constant motion, abrasion, and around-the-clock duty cycles.
Typical Tennessee applications in this segment:
Recommended Autac products: Retractile cords in 16 AWG to 12 AWG with TPR and PVC jackets are the workhorse for assembly-line and test-station drops, retracting cleanly out of the work area between cycles. For higher-current finishing and material-handling stations, 10 AWG / 20A configurations carry the load. Browse the Retractile Cords hub and Cord Sets for custom-terminated assemblies, and check the conductor color charts for plant-standard color coding.
Tennessee is home to more than 1,600 registered food and beverage manufacturers. Tyson Foods runs poultry and prepared-foods plants across the state, including Goodlettsville and Union City. McKee Foods (maker of Little Debbie) is headquartered and produces in Collegedale. Mars operates a confectionery plant in Cleveland, Unilever runs a food plant in Covington, and JBS and Conagra Brands add further processing capacity. These operations share a common environment: wash-down sanitation cycles, chemical and food-acid exposure, dust and particulate from grain and produce handling, and zero tolerance for line downtime during peak runs.
Typical Tennessee applications in this segment:
Recommended Autac products: SJOW and SOW UL types provide oil and water resistance for wash-down environments. Our Auta-Prene thermoset rubber jacket compound handles the cleaning chemistries and food-acid exposures common in beverage and dairy operations. For dust-heavy processing, shielded retractile configurations protect signal integrity on inspection and quality-monitoring equipment. Browse Coiled Cords for wash-down rated and shielded multi-conductor variants, and check the conductor color charts for plant-standard color coding.
Memphis is the busiest air-cargo hub in the world, anchored by the FedEx Express global Super Hub at Memphis International Airport. FedEx Logistics is headquartered downtown, and the metro's road, rail, and river access has drawn massive distribution operations from Amazon, Nike (its largest North American distribution center), and dozens of third-party logistics providers. High-throughput sortation, conveyor, and automated material-handling systems run continuously and rely on flexible, durable power and signal cordage at every workstation, scanner, and powered-equipment drop.
Typical Tennessee applications in this segment:
Recommended Autac products: Curly cords in 18 AWG to 14 AWG with TPR or PVC jackets handle scanner, controller, and workstation drops, retracting cleanly out of high-traffic aisles. For powered-equipment and charging applications, 12 AWG and 10 AWG retractile configurations carry higher current. Browse Curly Cords for signal and workstation builds and the Retractile Cords hub for higher-current drops, or use Build Your Cord to specify retracted length and termination for your facility.
Every Autac product family ships from the same North Branford facility on the same lead times, whether your purchase order originates in Nashville, Memphis, Knoxville, Chattanooga, Clarksville, Murfreesboro, Smyrna, or Spring Hill. Use these category hubs to browse stock catalog part numbers, application notes, and engineering specs:
Need a configuration that is not in the standard catalog? Tennessee product designers, EV and battery development engineers, and automotive-tooling teams regularly use our Build Your Cord tool to specify prototype cords for new equipment platforms. Specify conductor count (2 to 10), gauge (26 AWG to 10 AWG), voltage and current rating, retracted length (12" to 48" and beyond), extension ratio (1:3 to 1:7), jacket compound and color, optional shielding, and termination type — and we handle design, tooling, and manufacturing from a single Connecticut facility. Quote turnaround on a custom build is typically one to three business days; most custom orders ship in 4 to 6 weeks. There is no minimum order quantity, which makes it practical to validate a design with a 5- or 10-piece pilot before committing to a production run — a pattern that works especially well for Tennessee's fast-growing EV, battery, and automotive-supplier base.
From North Branford to Nashville, Memphis, Knoxville, Chattanooga, Clarksville, Murfreesboro, Smyrna, Spring Hill, Jackson, and every Tennessee destination in between, Autac ships standard ground freight in about two business days. Stock catalog cords typically leave our Connecticut dock within one business day of order entry. Total door-to-door turnaround for Tennessee stock orders runs roughly three business days end-to-end. For time-critical projects — automotive-line startups, battery-plant tooling, medical-device pilot builds — expedited options can compress turnaround further. Custom-engineered cords ship as soon as production completes, typically 4 to 6 weeks from design sign-off.
Domestic-only freight means no customs paperwork, no broker fees, no cross-border delays, and no surprises at the receiving dock — a meaningful advantage over imported cordage that moves through container ports and inland terminals. For high-volume Tennessee accounts, we coordinate scheduled releases against blanket POs to keep production lines stocked without distributor lead-time stack-up. Smaller Tennessee OEMs, suppliers, and contract manufacturers get the same direct-from-factory pricing as the largest accounts — pricing is based on configuration and volume, not customer-tier negotiations.
Setting up a Tennessee account takes a single phone call or quote request. Our sales team handles credit-application paperwork, vendor-onboarding submissions, supplier-quality surveys (PPAP, FAI, ISO 9001, IATF 16949-adjacent documentation, FDA DHF support), W-9 or diversity-certification documentation, and Tennessee-specific paperwork (resale and exemption certificates) as part of standard onboarding. Existing Autac customers expanding into Tennessee operations can extend their account to additional ship-to addresses without re-qualifying. Contact our sales team at 800.243.3161 or quote@autacusa.com to begin onboarding.
Tennessee OEM engineers and tooling teams regularly use Build Your Cord to spec prototype cords for new equipment platforms — any gauge, conductor count, length, jacket compound, color, and termination. No MOQ.
Request a quote on any catalog cord, or specify a custom build for your line. Stock orders ship from Connecticut within one business day — most Tennessee destinations are about two business days by ground, with expedited options available for rush programs.