Having recently made a five-year, $10-billion capital investment commitment for its U.S. manufacturing base, Toyota Motor North America has outline a $912-million program of improvements at five plants, to increase its capacity for producing hybrid vehicles.
The investments in five states will create 252 new manufacturing jobs, the automaker projected.
“Customers are embracing Toyota’s hybrid vehicles, and our U.S. manufacturing teams are gearing up to meet that growing demand,” stated Kevin Voelkel, senior vice president, manufacturing operations. “Toyota’s philosophy is to build where we sell, and by adding more American jobs and investing across our U.S. footprint, we continue to stay true to that philosophy.”
Toyota's hybrid electric vehicles have a gasoline engine and an electric motor and generator, alternating between them or using both for optimal efficiency according to driving conditions. In addition to the engine, electric motor/generator, a power control unit, and a hybrid battery, the system uses a planetary gear set to blend power and manage battery charging.
Among the goals of Toyota’s new projects for Toyota will be introducing production of a new hybrid-electric Toyota Corolla at the Blue Springs, Miss., plant. That project represents a $125-million investment.
The largest investment - $453 million - will be made at Toyota’s Buffalo, W.V. plant to increase assembly volumes for four-cylinder hybrid-compatible engines, sixth-generation hybrid transaxles, and rear motor stators. The new production capabilities will be available in 2027, bringing 80 jobs.
Other new investments include $204.4 million for a new machining line for four-cylinder hybrid-compatible engines at Toyota’s largest plant, in Georgetown, Ky. The new capabilities will result in 82 addition jobs there starting in 2027.
The Georgetown plant already has a series of projects estimated in the billions in support of a new battery-electric sport utility vehicle.
Two aluminum casting operations are included in the investment plans. At the Jackson, Tenn., operation, $71.4 million will be invested to increase output of hybrid transaxle cases and housings and engine blocks for hybrid vehicles. This investment program will involve three new production lines and will increase production capacity by nearly 500,000 units annually, starting in 2027 and 2028, and the plant will add 33 jobs as a result.
Toyota’s Troy, Mo., plant will have a new production line installed to cast aluminum cylinder heads for hybrid vehicles, to start in 2027. This will increase plant capacity by more than 200,000 cylinder heads annually and bring 57 new jobs to that location.
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Robert Brooks
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Robert Brooks has been a business-to-business reporter, writer, editor, and columnist for more than 20 years, specializing in the primary metal and basic manufacturing industries.