For a Japanese automaker, Toyota sure does make a lot of cars in the United States. Toyota has been involved in the United States automotive market for more than 55 years and over that time, the car maker has made a positive impact in the U.S. economy. In the automotive industry, almost every car produced has parts manufactured all over the globe, but Toyota is one of the global manufacturing companies that has made a significant investment in the United States, when so many manufacturers have left the company.
Manufacturing Plants in the United States
Toyota has manufacturing plants in the United States, where they build nine popular models. The factories are located in Texas, Kentucky, Indiana, and Mississippi. Sienna, Sequoia, Highlander, and Camry are manufactured in Indiana. The Avalon, Camry Hybrid, and Venza are manufactured in Kentucky. In Texas, the Tundra and Tacoma trucks are made and the Corolla is made in Mississippi. Some of these models have been made in the United States since the first Toyota plant was constructed in 1998. Almost every state has either a dealership, a financial services office, a manufacturing or supplier plant, an R&D office, or another role in the manufacturing of Toyotas.
Environmental Concern Beyond the Prius
As the creator and manufacture of the Prius, Toyota has shown the world that they care about the environment. Most people do not realize that Toyota does not just build one top Hybrid vehicle, but eleven different Hybrids. Toyota does not just build environmentally friendly cars, but they are also committed to creating green factories and dealerships, like the only LEED certified dealership in the world built in Eugene, Oregon. Ten of the Toyota facilities around North America have also received LEED certification. LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design and there are rigid standards that buildings must meet to earn this high honor.
Safety and Security
Toyota is not only committed to the environment, but to the people who drive their cars, too. Today’s cars are safer than any other time in automotive history, but many children still die in car accidents because they are not seated in safe car seats. In Cincinnati, Toyota joined forces with Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center to help get children from families in the lower socio-economic groups to get their children into car seats and seat belts. The project, called Buckle Up For Life, was so successful in Cincinnati that it has spread to other large cities around the country, like Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Antonio.
Safety Research Facilities
Not only is Toyota committed to making sure that children are safe on the roads, but they are committed to ensuring safety across the board. Toyota has invested more than $50 million to create the Collaborative Safety Research Center which looks at accident data to collaborate with hospitals, research universities, federal agencies, and more to build the safest vehicles on the road. Their founding partners include The University of Michigan, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, and Virginia Tech.
Job Creators for Americans
Most people today hear all about the job losses, but they rarely hear about job creation. In Blue Springs, Mississippi, the newest Toyota Plant will create 2,000 new jobs by the time is full of employees in 2012. The plant is expected to create up to 150,000 Toyota Corollas each year with this $800 million investment in this small town near Tupelo. The plant is about the size of 45 football fields, but the plant is a “zero-landfill” building, so that it will reuse everything and leave nothing in landfills; this also shows how committed Toyota is to protecting the environment.
Research, Development, and Philanthropy
Toyota not only has manufacturing facilities all over the Midwest and Southern states, but they also have a variety of other facilities all over the United States. Toyota is extremely proud of the fact that the company spends over $1 million each hour on research and development. Whether the R&D dollars are spent on safety, the environment, or anything else, the fact that Toyota spends that money at facilities in the United States is quite amazing. Toyota also spend a very large amount on philanthropic foundations; they have spent over $595 million donating that money to education foundations, medical foundations, and so much more.
One of the most amazing and fun creations from Toyota’s Research and Development efforts includes the THUMS (Total Human Model for Safety). This is simulation software that is used to measure injuries that occur in the human body. Crash test dummies do not have internal organs, ligaments, muscle or bones, so there is no way to tell how much damage is done to the human body during crash tests. So, to increase knowledge, Toyota created this technology and they have shared it with other car companies and even with colleges and universities, like Wake Forest where they are using THUMS to understand what happens to football players when they are hurt when they are tackled.
http://www.toyotaplace.com/blog/
No comments:
Post a Comment