Welcome to Toyota's world
of Advanced Manufacturing!
You are about to get
a behind the scenes look
at the people, processes
and U.S. based manufacturing facilities
assembling the safe, high-quality vehicles
Toyota customers know and trust.
But before we do that,
let's talk about how Toyota came to the U.S.
Toyota established itself
as part of America's cultural fabric
over 60 years ago
when Toyota Motor Sales, USA, Inc.
was formed in 1957
and we've been going places ever since.
Toyota debuted as a U.S. manufacturer in 1986
with the production of a white Corolla FX16
at the New United Motor Manufacturing, Inc.,
a joint venture with General Motors.
As we continue to grow in the U.S.,
our commitment remains steadfast
to invest locally,
assemble cars where they are sold,
and give back to the communities where we operate.
We can't wait to show you
Toyota's manufacturing processes
at eight of our U.S. plants.
Let's begin our journey
at the first U.S. manufacturing facility
to carry the Toyota name, Toyota Kentucky.
In addition to being the first,
having started production way back in 1988,
the Georgetown manufacturing facility
is also the largest
Toyota plant in the world.
Sitting on over 1300 acres,
this plant is nine million square feet under roof.
Here about 10,000 incredible team members
assemble 550,000 vehicles
and build 600,000 engines per year.
The first stop in the vehicle production process
is in stamping.
Huge coils of steel
are delivered every day,
then cut into sheets
and stamped into the parts
that make up the car body
such as hoods, fenders and doors.
At Toyota Kentucky,
these parts could become
a Camry, Avalon, or RAV4 Hybrid.
All of which are assembled
in the Bluegrass State.
For the next process,
we go down the Ohio River
to Southern Indiana
where Toyota broke ground
on their second U.S. vehicle plant in 1996.
Toyota Indiana,
located in Princeton, Indiana,
currently has 7,000 team members
and growing who assemble
the Highlander, Highlander Hybrid,
the all-hybrid Sienna and the Sequoia
in this recently updated
4.5 million square foot facility.
Sparks fly as the body
begins to take shape
in the body weld shop.
After the parts of the body are stamped,
robots and team members
work collaboratively to create the shell body.
The fully redesigned 2021 Sienna,
assembled here at Toyota Indiana,
use a high strength metal
that requires innovative bonding technologies
such as sealer bonds and laser welding.
The quality of the laser welds
is confirmed by ultrasound machines.
These pictures allow us
to look inside the weld
and confirm that it is a good quality weld,
making our vehicles rigid
and strong for the customer.
For the next step
in our assembly process,
we head south to our newest
vehicle production facility
in Blue Springs, Mississippi
where we'll show you
how vehicles get bright and shiny.
Production started at Toyota Mississippi
in the fall of 2011.
Built on 1700 acres,
the two million square foot facility
annually produces 170,000
of the world's all-time,
best-selling passenger car,
the Toyota Corolla.
After body weld,
it's time for the vehicle
to get its personality in the paint shop.
This process is so much more
than just the cool colors you see.
Each vehicle spends up
to 12 hours here as team members
and robots work collaboratively
to apply protective coating,
sealant primer, paint and clear coat.
Each Toyota is available
in an array of colors
and trim packages
making each as unique and fun as their owners.
From paint, every Toyota vehicle
moves to what most people
think of when picturing
auto manufacturing, assembly.
For this process,
we will head further south to truck country,
the great state of Texas.
Toyota broke ground in San Antonio, Texas
on this massive 2,000 acre campus in 2003.
The 2.2 million square foot manufacturing plant
sits in this thriving community
and is the home of the all-new
2022 Toyota Tundra.
At Toyota Texas,
thousands of parts are assembled
to complete the vehicle.
We do this together with our
20+ on-site suppliers
who are located right here on our property.
From the internal features
like the air bags, instrument panels,
and seats to the external parts
like the windshield and the doors,
this is where the vehicle all comes together.
In fact, Assembly is the largest production area
with the greatest number
of dedicated employees
of each vehicle plant.
One of the most exciting parts
of the assembly process
is when the engine
is married to the vehicle body.
Toyota engines and component parts
bring every Toyota to life.
Let's look at how and where
these critical components come together.
As Toyota grew its vehicle production
in the United States,
the need for quality engines
and their components grew too.
The four unit plants
in the Toyota USA manufacturing operations
are in and around areas where Toyota's
USA vehicle production facilities
are located in order to quickly
and effectively provide
vital parts for Toyota's vehicles.
Toyota Missouri,
located in Troy, Missouri,
opened in 1993.
Its 900 team members
make cylinder heads for every
car, truck and SUV Toyota makes
in North America.
Cylinder heads control the mixture
of fuel and air into the engine,
and the exhaust from the engine.
At Toyota, we believe the goal
of reducing carbon
in the atmosphere
is a priority shared by all.
Toyota Missouri produces
2.3 million cylinder heads per year,
all from recycled aluminum.
In 2020, 74.8 million pounds
of the recycled material
were used to make this vital engine component.
That's over two billion soda cans!
Right down the road,
in Jackson Tennessee,
300 team members take pride
in making aluminum engine blocks.
Like the cylinder heads
made at Toyota Missouri,
these essential components
are made from recycled material
for every vehicle Toyota
makes in North America.
Toyota Tennessee also makes
automatic transmission cases and housings.
Without these components
that provide stability and protection,
the engine and the transmission
would not be able to transmit
the power needed
to keep the vehicle moving.
Toyota West Virginia,
located in Buffalo,
is the only manufacturer
in North America
to assemble engines, transmissions,
and hybrid transaxles in one facility.
Since 2006, Toyota West Virginia
has assembled parts
for Toyota and Lexus models,
including many of the models
in our electrified product portfolio,
which includes hybrids,
plug-ins, battery-electrics
and hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles.
Toyota plans to expand
to around 70 electrified models globally by 2025!
At Toyota West Virginia,
thanks to the 2,000 dedicated team members,
a new transmission rolls off
the assembly line about every 25 seconds,
and a new four-cylinder engine
is built every 30 seconds.
Toyota Alabama is the Toyota
engine capital of North America.
With 1,800-highly skilled team members
located in Huntsville Alabama,
Toyota Alabama produces
3,000 engines each day.
Toyota sets high standards for quality
and each engine is thoroughly inspected
using high tech visualization systems
to help make sure
each part is assembled correctly.
Once complete, the engines are sent
to the vehicle plants,
like Toyota Texas,
to be placed in the vehicles.
Let's go back to San Antonio
to see it come together.
At Toyota Texas,
this process is called Engine Drop
because unlike the other
vehicle production plants
that install the engine
into the shell body
from underneath the vehicle.
In Texas, the engine is gently dropped
onto the frame first
before it is joined to the body.
For the final step in the assembly process,
we head back to where
we started at Toyota Kentucky.
Toyota is known worldwide
for quality vehicles.
Our team members take pride
in being an important part
of that reputation.
As vehicles head down
the brightly lit Final Line,
Team Members meticulously examine
every inch of the vehicle
with both their eyes and their hands
to make sure it meets
Toyota's exacting standards.
With a flash of the lights
and a honk of the horn,
a new vehicle drives off the line.
This happens at any one of the four
vehicle production plants
about every 60 to 70 seconds!
If you add it up,
in the time it has taken to watch this video,
around 40 vehicles will have lined-off!
After a series of performance tests,
the vehicles go to the large
marshaling yards to await
transport by rail or car carrier
to Toyota dealerships across the country.
From the dealerships,
our customers will choose
which model meets their mobility needs
then hit the city streets
and scenic byways of America
in their all new Toyota.