TexAmericas Center Signs Agreement to Support Japanese Business Growth and Technology Commercialization

Texarkana, USA (October 9, 2026) – TexAmericas Center, which owns and operates one of the largest advanced manufacturing, logistics and rail-served industrial parks in the United States, today signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with AIST Solutions and AIST Solutions America to help Japanese companies and technologies advance toward testing, demonstration and potential commercial production in the Texarkana region.

The agreement establishes a formal working relationship that connects TexAmericas Center with Japanese companies exploring U.S. market entry and expansion. TexAmericas Center will help connect those companies with industrial space, logistics services and local resources as they evaluate how to develop and grow their U.S. operations.

“Some companies need a place to test a technology or demonstrate a production process before they’re ready to choose a permanent U.S. location,” said Scott Norton, Executive Director and CEO of TexAmericas Center. “This agreement gives us a way to work with those companies earlier. We can help them understand what it would take to operate here and provide space and services as their plans develop.”

Signed at Texas A&M University–Texarkana, the agreement builds on the university’s existing educational and research partnership with AIST Solutions, established in August 2025. TexAmericas Center’s involvement adds industrial facilities and business support to a relationship that connects engineering, computing and technology research with industry needs.

“Our faculty and students can contribute to the questions companies need to answer before a technology is ready for broader use,” said Dr. Ross Alexander, President of Texas A&M University–Texarkana. “Working with AIST Solutions and TexAmericas Center creates opportunities to connect that research with real industrial applications. For students, it also offers the potential to gain experience solving problems alongside the companies that may one day employ them.”

AIST Solutions connects research with commercial applications. The partnership offers a way to explore how Japanese technologies could address U.S. industry needs, with access to university expertise and locations where companies could test and demonstrate their applications.

“Working with partners in Texarkana allows us to better understand U.S. industry needs and explore where our technologies may have practical applications. The combination of university research and TexAmericas Center’s industrial resources are valuable to that work,” said Seiji Osaka, CEO of AIST Solutions.

AIST Solutions America, which has established its base in the Texarkana area, connects Japanese technologies and expertise with American companies, universities and potential applications. Its local presence will help the partners identify opportunities and determine what support a company or technology may need.

“Having a team here allows us to work directly with local partners and understand what companies need on the ground,” said Hisao Yamasaki, Managing Director of AIST Solutions America.

Potential areas of collaboration include advanced manufacturing and industrial automation, energy and battery technologies, industrial recycling and biomanufacturing, as well as advanced materials, chemicals and critical minerals. The partners will explore opportunities based on industry needs and the readiness of individual technologies.

TexAmericas Center’s role includes providing “soft-landing” support: helping companies find the space, services and local connections needed to begin operating in a new market. Its capabilities include flexible leasing, development options, warehousing and third-party logistics, allowing companies to consider different approaches as they test demand and plan for growth.

The MOU establishes a foundation for that work. Specific projects and investment decisions will develop through subsequent collaboration.

“Our goal is to help these relationships develop into businesses that can operate and grow here,” Norton said. “That takes follow-through. We want to stay involved as companies test their ideas, find customers and decide whether they are ready for a larger operation in Texarkana.”

The agreement is part of TexAmericas Center’s broader efforts to attract foreign direct investment and strengthen relationships with Japanese business partners. Those efforts included hosting a Tokyo Metropolitan Government delegation earlier this year for discussions about U.S. market entry, industrial facilities, logistics and workforce resources.

For more information about TexAmericas Center and its international business expansion resources, visit TexAmericasCenter.com.

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About TexAmericas Center

Located on the Texas side of the Texarkana metropolitan area, TexAmericas Center owns and operates a premier industrial park, which is one of the largest mixed-use industrial parks in the United States. With roughly 12,000 development-ready acres of land and approximately 3.5 million square feet of commercial and industrial product, TexAmericas Center services four states (Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas). As the Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ) over all development processes on the property, TexAmericas Center helps companies save 12 to 18 months of public review time, leading to faster Speed-To-Occupancy.

For seven consecutive years, Business Facilities magazine has ranked TexAmericas Center among the top 10 industrial parks in the country, most recently ranked No. 5 in 2026. TexAmericas Center has also been named one of Trade & Industry Development’s America’s Top Site, recognizing its readiness, infrastructure and ability to support complex industrial projects. Additionally, Expansion Solutions has recognized TexAmericas Center’s Qualified Site Program as the No. 1 certified site program in the Southern U.S.

Seven rail lines converge on the Texarkana region and TexAmericas Center hosts an on-site 350-car rail yard and has over 30 miles of rail running through its properties. TAC Rail services include transload as well as rail car storage and spotting. TexAmericas Center has also been added to Union Pacific’s Focus Sites Program, becoming one of only 32 sites in the U.S. to receive this prestigious designation.

TexAmericas Center also offers third-party logistics (3PL) services to assist companies with inventory management, warehousing and fulfillment needs. Combining a Flex Lease with 3PL services gives companies seeking to expand or make first-time investment in the region an easier path to start operations.

All of TexAmericas Center’s property is a designated U.S. Opportunity Zone, New Market Tax Credit Census Tract, EB-5 Immigration through Investment area, Foreign Trade Zone (#258), and a Texas Enterprise Zone. TexAmericas Center has the operating capabilities of a municipality but functions like a traditional real estate development company, offering customized real estate, logistics, incentive and financing solutions. For more information, visit TexAmericasCenter.com.