Honda to build Bt1.28-bn spare-parts plant in Kingdom
Honda Motor Co will build a Bt1.28 billion spare auto-parts plant in Thailand to strengthen its ability to respond quickly to demand in the rapidly growing Asian automobile markets.
"Until now, spare body parts have been produced by Honda's automobile factories and suppliers in each Asia-Oceania country. With the new factory, Honda will consolidate its parts production into a single location to ensure the highest quality, reduce costs and improve logistics," Adisak Rohitasune, senior vice president of Asian Honda Motor Co Ltd, said yesterday.The Board of Investment has granted permission to Honda to set up the new manufacturing company in Thailand, said Asian Honda Motor, Honda's Asia-Oceania regional headquarters. "The Asia-Oceania automobile market is expanding, with sales of spare body parts increasing 114 per cent from April 2005 to March this year, compared to the previous year," Adisak said. The Japanese carmaker said the factory would come on line next June, manufacturing parts for its CRV and Jazz - or Fit as it's called in Japan - passenger vehicles destined for Asia-Oceania, Europe and Japan. The move will concentrate the Japanese carmaker's spare auto-body parts manufacturing in Thailand, which has become a core production and logistics centre for many Japanese auto companies. It will also help the firm respond quickly to demand trends in Asia, where rapid economic growth is enabling more consumers to buy cars. The factory will employ about 200 workers and will be run by Honda unit Asian Parts Manufacturing Co, which is located in Ayutthaya province. The plant will export parts to other countries in the Asia-Oceania region and also Japan, US and Europe. Some parts will also be provided to support local production in Thailand. - The Nation
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