US, September 28, 2017
Five Toyota Motor Corp plants in the US would get a production boost with the help of a $374 million investment. Earlier this year Akio Toyoda CEO,Toyota Motor Corp, stated that the company planned to make $10 billion investment in the US. This project along with some others would put the proposal near halfway through with $4.1 billion being invested in the US. The expansions will begin this year and will be operational by 2020.
“It underscores Toyota’s confidence in the capability and global competitiveness of our North American manufacturing,” Jeff Moore, Toyota North America’s Senior Vice President of Manufacturing, said in a statement.
Moore also emphasised on how crucial this investment is in furthering Toyota’s New Global Architecture (TNGA) engines, and also for localising production of hybrid powertrains, which is a core Toyota technology.
The Buffalo, West Virgina plant would get $115.3 million of the total investment to add a new production line of hybrid transaxles( hybrid transmissions). That along with the expansion of 2.5 litre engine production in Kentucky- $120.96 million will be invested for the same- will be used in hybrid vehicles such as the Highlander SUV produced in Princeton, Indiana.
The plant in Huntsville, Alabama will receive $106 million and will undergo a complete upgrade so as to implement TNGA. The upgrade will enable the plant to build engines that will realise the TNGA vision.
Bodine Aluminum, a company that was acquired by Toyota Motors in 1990, will receive $17 million for the production of 2.5 litre cylinder heads in their Montana plant. They will also receive $14.5 million for their plant in Jackson Tennessee which will manufacture hybrid transaxle case and housings and 2.5 litre engine blocks.
Toyota remains the world leader in gas-electric hybrids, surpassing 3 million sales in the U.S. and 10 million globally.
“This investment is part of our long-term commitment to build more vehicles and components in the markets in which we sell them,” said Jim Lentz, CEO, Toyota Motor North America. “This strategy is designed to better serve our customers and dealers, and positions our manufacturing operations to fulfill their needs well into the future.”
The investments will also bring in 50 new jobs as predicted by the company and employment stability to all five plants.
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