[Merged] Toyota shutting down Bicutan Plant

[OTO]

Toyota to merge 2 plants due to poor sales
By Marianne V. Go
The Philippine Star 10/16/2004
http://www.philstar.com/philstar/News200410160703.htm

Japanese automaker Toyota Motor Philippines Corp. (TMPC) said it plans to merge its two manufacturing plants by January next year since they are operating at less than half of capacity due to sluggish sales.

A company spokeswoman said TMPC will close down its Bicutan assembly plant and will instead consolidate all its assembly operations at the bigger Sta. Rosa plant in Laguna.

The two factories have a combined annual capacity of roughly 50,000 units, but only about 20,000 vehicles a year have been assembled, she said.

"Discussions about merging the plants are proceeding," the spokeswoman said.

Capacity will drop to around 30,000 after production of the top-selling Revo multi-purpose vehicle or Asian utility vehicle (AUV) is moved to the Sta. Rosa plant, helping to increase the overall utilization rate, the official added.

She pointed out that the Bicutan plant has been slated for closure since it is outdated. The plant was built in 1988 and has a capacity to assemble 36,000 units. However, the plant turns out only about half of its capacity as poor new car sales caused by the growing illegal imports of used vehicles – expected to reach 30,000 units this year – continue to weigh down on the plant’s operations.

TMPC is now planning to convert the 6.4-hectare Bicutan plant into a pre-shipment inspection facility, a training area or a service center.

Consolidating assembly operations at TMPC’s Sta. Rosa plant, the source said, would be necessary since "we need to sustain the new plant," adding that it would be "impractical to maintain two plants with this kind of a market."

TMPC had built the modern Sta. Rosa plant way in 1997 on the

optimistic assumption that the Philippine automotive market would reach annual sales of 180,000 units.

Unfortunately, the Asian economic crisis and the continuing

economic difficulties took their toll on the Philippine automotive market , which is struggling to hit even half of the 180,000 units target.

The source, however, assured that despite the consolidation of the two plants, the company would retain the estimated 1,500 workers.

[carlocaraddict]

from the other board:
Toyota is preparing for the launch of its all-new Tamaraw Revo/Innova with the Bicutan's plant closure.

www.bworld.com.ph/current...dline.html

Toyota to shut assembly plant
Toyota Motor Corporation will shut down one of two assembly plants in the country due to the continued weakness of the Philippine motor vehicle market.

The closure of the facility in Bicutan, Taguig was announced in Japan and was confirmed yesterday by sources at Toyota Motor Philippines Corp.

With the closure of the 15-year-old plant, all assembly operations will be transferred to the 25-hectare Toyota Special Economic Zone in Santa Rosa, Laguna. But all 1,500 workers in both assembly plants will be retained.

Toyota has been assembling Revo commercial vehicles at the 6.4-hectare facility, which opened in 1988. The Bicutan plan, however, has been running at only half of its capacity of 36,000 units a year.

The Santa Rosa plant, meanwhile, began operations in 1997. It currently produces Altis and Camry sedans, but only 20% of its capacity of 48,000 units a year is utilized.

Sources said the Bicutan plant is already "outdated." Sluggish automotive sales have also made it untenable for Toyota to operate two assembly plants. Closure of the Bicutan plant will improve the capacity utilization of the Santa Rosa plant, the sources said.

"We need to sustain the new plant. It is impractical to maintain two plants with this kind of a market," said one source.

It was not mentioned when the plant would be closed, but the source said the Bicutan plant will become either a service center or a training facility.

Company sources also said the Santa Rosa plant was opened in 1997 on expectations that the Philippine market would expand to 180,000 units that year from over 160,000 units in 1996.

The industry has never recovered since its peak in 1996. Poor market demand and the unabated entry of imported used cars have forced vehicle assemblers to abandon the 2004 sales target of 100,000 units. The revised 2004 target is 87,600 units, down from 2003 sales of 92,336 and 12.4% lower than the original target.

In a meeting early this month, the Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines, Inc. (CAMPI) and the Truck Manufacturers Association (TMA) retained the original target for passenger cars of 33,000. Passenger cars have been experiencing tremendous growth due to lower excise taxes which took effect in October last year.

The cutback is in the formerly tax-exempt commercial vehicle segment, which has suffered from a new excise tax scheme. CAMPI and TMA expect to sell only 54,600 commercial vehicles by yearend, 18.5% lower that the original target of 67,000 units.

The announcement of the Bicutan plant's closure came after the Toyota Group announced last month that additional investments into the country would reach PhP7 billion in the next two years, with the Philippines becoming the Japanese automaker's production base for auto parts and components.

Toyota has so far invested PhP15 billion in the country, Toyota Motor Philippines senior vice-president Serafin M. Pantaleon said during ceremonies last month marking the start of the company's export of transmission assemblies to Japan.

Out of the PhP7 billion in new investments, PhP3.6 billion will be earmarked for more than a dozen companies under the Toyota Group. The amount includes expenses for plant modernization, plant expansion for capacity increase, quality improvement, and investments in new technology.

Last year, Toyota committed to pour in PhP3.4 billion for its ecozone, covering new production lines and the construction of a new storage room for completely-built-up vehicles, including a new administrative service and other buildings. Toyota had said the additional production lines would be allotted for the assembly of leading models like the Altis, Camry, and the Revo. -- Felipe F. Salvosa II

coming really soon:

[squala]

It clearly shows that Toyota is on cost-cutting measures, but they're brilliant enough to retain the reliability for which their cars have been known ever since.

And carlocaraddict, what model is that Toyota, new Revo? Looks like a minivan to me.

[carlocaraddict]

its the Kijang Innova, the next Revo, but we still don't know the name that will be used here. "Revo Innova" kaya? Hopefully!

[pajerokid]

I dont see the logic in maintaining two plants when demand isnt really that big in this country. Ganda nung next AUV ng toyota, sana mura lang hehe.

[Marantz]

Tmp bicutan will be our extension office. (toyota makati inc.) It will be more dedicated to service. Just like toyota cubao with an extension office in marikina Yes, production will all tranfer to sta. rosa.

[McLeor]

I dont want to be a pessimist, but does the closure of Bicutan plant has something to do with the future plans of Toyota to go full blast in its facilities in Guandong Province of China? Most multi-national company would move to China to get away the cost of manufacturing in the Philippines, and likewsie to conquer the market of eager-china customers (imagine there are 1.2Billions of them). Presently, I think the VIOS models are being produced in Toyota China (another plant). The Guandong Plant is so huge, this is about the size of Magallanes Village and Urdaneta Village combined ...or about the size of the Municipality of Navotas. Imagine...Ganyan kalaki yan..sabi nila, from the main gate up to the edge, it will take you 30 - 40 minutes by car...mas malaki pa iyan sa buong industrial park sa Santa Rosa...so it wouldn't be surprising if Bicutan Plant will be closed down (or reduce manufacturing capacity), or later on the Santa Rosa Plant (maybe five to ten years from now), unless we do something about it and be competetive.
******************************
Tokyo, Japan, Sep 06, 2004 (JCN Newswire via COMTEX) -- Guangzhou Automobile Group Co., LTD. (Guangzhou Automobile) and Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) held a ceremony today in Guangzhou, China, to mark the establishment of Toyota's first production and sales base in China's Guangdong Province. Guangzhou Toyota Motor Co., Ltd. (GTMC) was established on Sept. 1 following approval by the Chinese government; it is expected to have an annual production capacity of 100,000 vehicles, with production and sales of the mid-size Toyota Camry sedan scheduled to begin in mid-2006.

Capitalized at 1.3 billion yuan RMB (approx. 17.3 billion yen) with equity participation at 50% by both Guangzhou Automobile and TMC, GTMC - in the heart of China's largest automobile market of Guangdong Province - is expected to play an active role in the future development of Toyota's operations in China. Guangzhou Automobile Chairman Zhang Fangyou is slated to be named GTMC chairman, while Toru Kuzuhara, a project general manager at TMC's Takaoka Plant in Japan, is due to be named GTMC president.

Today's red-carpet establishment ceremony was graced with the presence of numerous officials from the Chinese central government as well as the Guangdong provincial and Guangzhou municipal governments. Guangzhou Automobile's Chairman Zhang and President Lu Zhifeng and TMC's Executive Vice President Kosuke Shiramizu, Senior Managing Director Akio Toyoda and Honorary Chairman Shoichiro Toyoda were also in attendance.

The GMTC-built Camry is scheduled to feature the AZ engine made by Guangqi Toyota Engine, Ltd. (GTE), an engine-making joint venture set up in February this year by Guangzhou Automobile and TMC.

Overview of GTMC



Company name: Guangzhou Toyota Motor Co., Ltd (GTMC)
Location: Guangzhou Nansha Economic and Technological Development Zone,
Guangdong, PRC
Representatives: Chairman: Zhang Fangyou (Chairman, Guangzhou Automobile)
Vice Chairman: Akio Toyoda (Senior Managing Director, TMC)
(non-resident)
President: Toru Kuzuhara (Project General Manager,
Takaoka Plant, TMC)
Executive Vice President: Yuan Zhongrong (Vice President,
Guangzhou Automobile)
Establishment: Sept. 1, 2004
Duration of JV: 30 years
Total investment: 3.8 billion yuan RMB (approx. 50.8 billion yen)
Capitalization: 1.3 billion yuan RMB (approx. 17.3 billion yen)
Equity: Guangzhou Automobile: 50%; TMC: 50%
Employees: Approx. 1,400 scheduled (at start of production in mid-2006)
Land area: Approx. 1,900,000 square meters
Product lineup: Camry with GTE-made AZ engines (2.4 liters and 2.0 liters)
Production capacity: 100,000 units/year
Start of production: Mid-2006

[mazdamazda]

Originally posted by McLeor
I dont want to be a pessimist, but does the closure of Bicutan plant has something to do with the future plans of Toyota to go full blast in its facilities in Guandong Province of China? Most multi-national company would move to China to get away the cost of manufacturing in the Philippines, and likewsie to conquer the market of eager-china customers (imagine there are 1.2Billions of them). Presently, I think the VIOS models are being produced in Toyota China (another plant). The Guandong Plant is so huge, this is about the size of Magallanes Village and Urdaneta Village combined ...or about the size of the Municipality of Navotas. Imagine...Ganyan kalaki yan..sabi nila, from the main gate up to the edge, it will take you 30 - 40 minutes by car...mas malaki pa iyan sa buong industrial park sa Santa Rosa...so it wouldn't be surprising if Bicutan Plant will be closed down (or reduce manufacturing capacity), or later on the Santa Rosa Plant (maybe five to ten years from now), unless we do something about it and be competetive.

well, many car manufacturers already have plants inside China apart from the SEA plants - this would be used mainly for the domestic consumption of China (since the demand is huge and importing from overseas is costlier). heck, even BMW has a plant in China.

as what I've been saying before, the other car manufacturers should follow what Ford/Mazda model.

an example for the SEA region:
- Revo/Kijang > Philippines
- HiLux > Thailand
- Camry > Japan
- Altis > Malaysia
- Vios, Prado > China

[McLeor]

Most car makers do have plants in China, GM, VW (which is one of the first in China) etc. Toyota came in late, but all of them, should I say, have normal capacity for china market. This new Toyota Plant is so Huge and it can even supply to other parts of the world in the next ten years, now with the free global trading, distibutorship in the Philippines would be enough. Car manufacturing may be different from other products, which has shown example for most of the pull out from the Philippines (Reebok, electronics company, textiles, garmets etc etc), but they are all the same, its the nature of having business. So we should be cautious about these facts. If they pull out totally, big business tends to reduce by half or even more (means lesser jobs again) As of now, the main advantage of Filipino workers are due to education (linked to Quality), but with the boom of Chinese economy, expect more educated mainland chinese workforce. Who need English speakers, there are more Chinese Speakers in the world !!!!

[revoGSX]

sa thailand pa galing ang vios at hilux di po ba?

squala,
2005 revo po yun.. not sure kung revo talaga gagamitin nilang name like what carloaddict said
eto official website at out na ito sa indonesia www.kijanginnova.com