Toyota City, Japan, Oct 22, 2011 - (ACN Newswire) - Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) held a cornerstone-laying ceremony here today for the Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (China) Co., Ltd. (TMEC) R&D Center in the Changshu Southeast Economic Development Zone in Changshu, China.
Guests from the central, provincial and municipal government attended the ceremony, as well as guests from joint-venture partners including Jin Yi, deputy general manger of the China FAW Group Corporation (FAW), and Zhang Fangyou, chairman of the Guangzhou Automobile Group Co., Ltd. (GAC). TMC President Akio Toyoda, Executive Vice President Takeshi Uchiyamada and Executive Vice President Atsushi Niimi were also in attendance.
At the ceremony, it was announced that from January 2012, Senior Managing Officer Tadashi Yamashina would be appointed as the new president of TMEC. Of the
appointment, President Akio Toyoda said that Mr. Yamashina was selected because of his understanding of the different vehicle usage requirements for the vast variety of Chinese roads and his in-depth knowledge of energy conservation and new energy vehicle technology. Toyoda went on to say that Yamashina has top-level expertise in technological fields as well as first-hand experience in Europe, where he learned much about car culture and the "fun to drive" spirit of motor sports. "With his background, I firmly believe that he will be able to make a significant contribution to the auto industry in China," Toyoda said.
TMC established TMEC on November 17, 2010, and operations at the center began in April 2011. Construction of major facilities, including the test track, main administration and laboratory facilities, is scheduled for completion in 2013. TMEC is promoting the spread of environmental technologies in China to establish it as a base to develop cutting-edge component technologies required for leading environmental vehicles. A special center, to be named the Energy Saving and New Energy Vehicle Technical Center, will be established for this purpose and will communicate with a wide range of external parties, including joint-venture partners, suppliers, and other manufacturers regarding environmental technologies. In addition, TMEC will proactively collaborate with universities and other third-party organizations to conduct research into fundamental technologies.
Furthermore, TMC also plans to create a development group for the production of Chinese-made hybrid vehicles, including the localization of hybrid system components. Plans call for the manufacture and sales of vehicles equipped with China-produced hybrid systems at and through FAW and GAC joint-venture companies by around 2015.
TMC, together with TMEC and the R&D centers of its two Chinese joint-venture companies, will continue to strive to produce vehicles that meet consumer needs in China.
Outline of Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (China) Co., Ltd.
Location: Changshu Southeast Economic Development Zone,
Changshu, China
Chairman: TMC Executive Vice President Takeshi Uchiyamada
President: Shunsaku Takeuchi
(From January 2012: TMC Senior Managing Officer
Tadashi Yamashina)
Capital: 234 million U.S. dollars
Investment 689 million U.S. dollars
(planned): (land, buildings, test course, test facilities, others.)
Equity: TMC: 100%
Land area: Approx. 2.34 million m2 (including 69,000 m2 for
buildings and 740,000 m2 for a test track)
Facilities Various test facilities including chassis dynamometers,
(planned): as well as test courses including a high-speed circuit,
rough road for durability tests and road for evaluating
marketability
Employees: Approx. 200 (as of July 2011), eventual goal of 1,000
Established: November 17, 2010
Start of ops: April 2011