Toyota has broken ground on Toyota Motor Manufacturing de Guanajuato (TMMGT), its fifteenth manufacturing facility in North America.
TMMGT will produce Corolla, the top selling car in the world, beginning in 2019, and will employ approximately 2,000 team members from the Bajío region.
With an annual vehicle capacity of 200,000 units per year and a $1bn investment, TMMGT will serve as the model of manufacturing for Toyota thanks in part to it design built on the anticipated Toyota New Global Architecture (TNGA).
TNGA will serve as a catalyst for building more models on common platforms, making intelligent use of common parts, and fully leveraging Toyota’s supply chain.
TMMGT president Mike Bafan said: “TMMGT will afford us the opportunity to boost vehicle quality and appeal while achieving cost savings through production engineering innovations.
“This plant will also be simple, sustainable, mindful of its environment and highly competitive. Ultimately, this means our customers will benefit from our cars being produced locally with the highest quality and environmental standards."
TMC board chairman Takeshi Uchiyamada said: “Toyota’s investment in Guanajuato represents a long-term sign of our commitment to Mexico, its people and the Bajío region.
“TMMGT will play a key role in how we make products in the future, while setting a standard for manufacturing excellence in the industry.”
He also highlighted that under Toyota’s Environmental Challenge 2050, which seeks to reduce the company’s global carbon footprint, Toyota will lower CO2 emissions and water usage by fifty percent.
In Guanajuato alone, the automaker will help clean up Río Querétaro and strengthen water conservation.
Moreover, Toyota announced it will aid the needs of the local community through mobility thanks in part to a donation of five Hilux trucks and uniforms to the local police and fire departments.
The governor of Guanajuato, Miguel Márquez Márquez, commented that the installation of TMMGT contributes to consolidate the most important automotive cluster in the state.
He said: "The development Toyota will generate in the state will benefit the economy of the region since direct and indirect jobs will be created and the number of companies that will supply the plant with different inputs will increase.
"Guanajuato is the main automotive cluster in the country, contributing to achieve the record in economic growth registered today, which is above the national average."
Ildefonso Guajardo, Secretary of Economy, said that Toyota's growth in the country, with the construction of this important plant with cutting-edge technology, is a reflection of the confidence Mexico projects abroad to attract investment.
He said: "We have very attractive competitive advantages for large companies -like Toyota- that recognize the quality of our country’s workforce.”
Lastly, Gonzalo González Centeno, mayor of Apaseo el Grande, thanked Toyota for its support towards the community.
He said: "Our young people require opportunities for their development and we are sure that this complex that Toyota will build in Apaseo el Grande will bring many benefits for everyone.”
Once production begins at TMMGT, Toyota will have the capacity to produce approximately 2.2 million vehicles annually in North America.
Attending the ceremony were Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) Board Chairman Takeshi Uchiyamada, TMMGT President Mike Bafan, Toyota de México Group Vice President Jun Umemura, Toyota Motor Sales de México CEO Tom Sullivan and Toyota Motor México General Counsel and Government Affairs Director Luis Lozano; accompanied by Guanajuato Governor Miguel Márquez Márquez, Mexico’s Secretary of Economy Ildefonso Guajardo and Apaseo el Grande Mayor Gonzalo González Centeno.
