Toyota Has Most Efficient Plant in N.A., Harbour Report Says

Washington DC June 2, 2005; The AIADA newsletter reported that Toyota has surpassed Nissan as leader in assembly plant productivity in North America, according to the annual Harbour Report on automobile plant productivity released Thursday, reports Automotive News.

“"Toyota’s labor productivity lead equates to a $350 to $500 per vehicle cost advantage relative to domestic manufacturers," said Harbour President Ron Harbour. He noted that Toyota has placed more emphasis on the Toyota Production System and the automaker is aggressively spreading standardized manufacturing processes throughout its plants.” According to the News, “Toyota Motor Corp. cut its total labor hours per vehicle 5.5 percent from last year’s study to 27.90 hours.”

Meanwhile, “Nissan, traditionally the leader in assembly plant productivity, saw its overall labor hours per vehicle climb 4.8 percent to 29.43 hours. The reason: The automaker introduced several redesigned products in 2004, including the Maxima sedan, Pathfinder SUV and the Frontier pickup at its Smyrna plant.”