Toyota Expands Manufacturing Operations In Malaysia With New Plant

UMW Toyota Motor Sdn Bhd (UMWT) which is the exclusive distributor and manufacturer of Toyota and Lexus vehicles in Malaysia, has announced the construction of a second vehicle manufacturing plant in Malaysia. The new plant is sited at the Bukit Raja Industrial Estate, Klang, Selangor with approximate land size of 670,000 square metres and is expected to commence operations in early 2019.

The new plant, which will manufacture passenger cars, will complement UMWT’s current wholly-owned plant – Assembly Services Sdn Bhd (ASSB) and will cater to the growth of future local demand for and preferences of Toyota vehicles. “In today’s business environment, customers’ requirements are getting ever more cultivated and we are committed to meeting their needs and aspirations. In order to meet customers’ growing demand, Toyota Motor Corporation along with UMW Group and UMWT have decided to level up our production to ensure operation efficiency and cost competitiveness,” said Mr. Tatsuro Takami, Managing Officer of Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) who made the announcement in Kuala Lumpur.

He added, “This new plant building will be one of the important fields of practice to realize Toyota’s aims in providing “ever-better” cars for the public and also it’s initiative for a steady growth. I believe strongly, UMWT will strive to serve Malaysian customers with high quality vehicles manufactured by our talented people working in a new and advanced plant.”

Tan Sri Asmat Kamaludin, Chairman of UMW Group said, “We are grateful to our joint-venture partner, Toyota Motor Corporation, for their support and willingness to proceed with this important project which is seen as a move to strengthen our commitment to meet customers’ demand in Malaysia.”

Mr. Akio Takeyama, Deputy Chairman of UMW Toyota Motor further elaborated, “The investment for this project is approximately RM 2 billion which include land, building and equipment. The construction work will begin in the second half of this year and we expect to start our operation of manufacturing passenger cars including models that meet the Energy Efficient Vehicle criteria set by the government in early 2019. The initial production of the new plant will be 50,000 units per year and we hope to expand it depending on the market demand.”

UMWT is positive that its new plant will contribute to the further development of the Malaysian auto industry and it supports the present National Automotive Policy (NAP) which encourages greater local production of vehicles.

The new plant will be feature advanced production technology in line with Toyota’s ultimate goal to establish “Simple, Slim, and Flexible” plants around the world and operate on 5 main characteristics – High Quality, Better Efficiency, Higher Employee Skills, Employee-Friendly and Eco-Friendly.

The current plant in Shah Alam will continue its operations but part of the current passenger car line will be moved to the new plant once it’s commissioned. The current plant will also be improved and streamlined to produce mainly commercial vehicles. The two plants will give UMWT a combined annual production volume of approximately 90,000 to 100,000 units of vehicles.

Further, Toyota Boshoku UMW, a joint venture company between UMWT and Toyota Boshoku Corporation which makes seats and other interior components for Toyota vehicles will also move its production operations to the new plant.