Toyota Bodine Aluminum in Jackson is one of five manufacturing plants in the United States that will benefit from a $373.8 million investment from the parent company.
According to a press release, Toyota upped the stakes to remain the top manufacturer of hybrid vehicles worldwide with the investment that will support production of its first American-made hybrid powertrain and implementing Toyota’s New Global Architecture (TNGA) at its Alabama plant in Huntsville.
Each project is scheduled to begin this year and all should be operational by 2020.
The investments will include adding new production of hybrid transaxles (hybrid vehicle transmissions) at the Buffalo, West Virginia, manufacturing facility; expanding 2.5-liter engine capacity at the Georgetown, Kentucky, plant; increasing production of 2.5-liter cylinder heads at Bodine Aluminum’s Troy, Missouri, plant; and modifying the Bodine Jackson plant to accommodate production of hybrid transaxle cases and housings and 2.5-liter engine blocks.
The Jackson facility will receive a distribution of $14,500,000.
“We are thrilled to win this $14.5 million dollar investment to build Toyota’s latest 2.5 liter engine blocks and Hybrid Transaxle cases and housings at Toyota Bodine in Jackson,” said Shawn Daly, plant manager at Toyota Bodine Aluminum in Jackson. “This announcement reflects our Team Members’ strong capabilities and global competitiveness, and helps us to continue to secure a bright future for Toyota Bodine in Jackson, Tennessee.”
In Huntsville, the plant will undergo a comprehensive upgrade to enable it to build engines that complement TNGA.
“This investment is part of our long-term commitment to build more vehicles and components in the markets in which we sell them,” said Jim Lentz, CEO, Toyota Motor North America. “This strategy is designed to better serve our customers and dealers, and positions our manufacturing operations to fulfill their needs well into the future.”
The 2.5-liter engines manufactured in Kentucky and transaxles made in West Virginia will be used in hybrid vehicles built in North America such as the Highlander Hybrid manufactured in Princeton, Indiana. Toyota remains the world leader in gas-electric hybrids, surpassing three million sales in the U.S. and 10 million globally.
Fifty new jobs will be created because of the investment at the Alabama plant. There will be no net gain of jobs at the Kentucky, West Virginia, or Bodine Aluminum facilities, but these investments will help to ensure the stability of the plants’ employment levels in the future.
“This investment across five American plants expands capacity for our latest TNGA engines, and localizes production of hybrid powertrains, a core Toyota technology,” said Jeff Moore, senior vice president for Manufacturing. “It underscores Toyota’s confidence in the capability and global competitiveness of our North American manufacturing.”
The total investment of $373.8 million will be distributed as follows:
● Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Georgetown, Kentucky – $120,960,000 ● Bodine Aluminum Jackson, Tennessee – $14,500,000
● Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Buffalo, West Virginia – $115,300,000 ● Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Huntsville, Alabama – $106,000,000
● Bodine Aluminum Troy, Missouri – $17,050,000
These projects, and others previously announced, move Toyota nearly halfway ($4.1 billion) toward its commitment to invest $10 billion in the U.S. as announced by CEO Akio Toyoda in January 2017.
(PHOTO: Shawn Daly, left, is the plant manager at Toyota Bodine Aluminum, and Jason Bates is the administration manager)
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