Subaru of Indiana Automotive (SIA) and Toyota held a ceremony today to commemorate production of the plant's first Toyota Camry.
In March 2006, SIA parent Fuji Heavy Industries (FHI) and Toyota announced a collaborative agreement that would include Camry production at SIA.
A $230 million investment gives SIA the capacity to produce 100,000 Camrys per year. Camry production will add 1,000 associates for a total of more than 3,200 at SIA.
Attending the ceremony were FHI president Ikuo Mori and Toyota Motor Corporation president Katsuaki Watanabe. They congratulated SIA associates and Toyota team members involved in the project's development for their hard work and commitment to building America's best-selling car at SIA.
“Production of the Camry at SIA represents an important start to our business collaboration with Toyota,” said Mori. “Together, we were able to accomplish this goal in a short period of time through the efforts of all associates involved in this project.”
“Fuji and Toyota faced many challenges for Camry production, including a short amount of preparation time, and we are grateful for the hard work of our associates and team members,” said Watanabe. “We look forward to growing a long-term relationship with Fuji, SIA and the local community.”
“The Camrys are rolling and so is Indiana,” said Governor Mitch Daniels. “We are honored by the new investment in our state and the confidence in Hoosier workers.”
To thank the local community for its support, SIA and Toyota yesterday announced a $60,000 donation to the Columbian Park Zoo for its owl exhibit.
In addition to the Camry, SIA builds the Subaru Tribeca, Outback and Legacy. SIA produced about 120,000 Subarus in 2006.
About Toyota
Toyota (NYSE:TM) established operations in North America in 1957 and will operate 15 manufacturing plants in North America by 2010. There are more than 1,700 Toyota, Lexus and Scion dealerships in North America which sold more than 2.8 million vehicles in 2006. Toyota directly employs over 41,000 in North America and its investment here is currently valued at more than $18.6 billion, including sales and manufacturing operations, research and development, financial services and design. Toyota's annual purchasing of parts, materials, goods and services from North American suppliers totals more than $28.5 billion.
Toyota currently produces 11 vehicles in North America, including the Avalon, Camry, Camry Hybrid, Corolla, Matrix, Sienna, Solara, Sequoia, Tacoma, Tundra and the Lexus RX 350. By 2010, Toyota will have the annual capacity to build approximately 2.2 million cars and trucks, 1.45 million engines and 600,000 automatic transmissions.
