Toyota accelerates projects to also be big in Brazil

Toyota took half a century to give, with the launch of the Etios, the great shot to become a popular brand in Brazil. Going forward, however, does not want to wait so long in their next steps in the country.
The Japanese automaker-extremely meticulous in every move before the Brazilian market-is involved in projects ranging from transferring the administrative headquarters for the greater ABC transform your oldest factory in São Bernardo do Campo (SP), on the basis of support and release of new technologies, in which can culminate in the production of hybrid cars in the country.
At the same time, advances in the construction of the engine plant in Porto Feliz, São Paulo interior, makes plans to increase national production of other components and works behind the scenes to convince the Government to release the new propulsion technologies stimuli, thus opening the doors for the Prius, the best-selling hybrid car in the world.
To begin with, the administration of the businesses will be made from the factory in São Bernardo do Campo, where Hilux parts are produced, imported from Argentina, and the Corolla, mounted in Indaiatuba, also in São Paulo. Ricardo Bastos, General Manager of the automaker's Government relations, says the idea is to conclude in the first half of 2015 the transfer of administrative headquarters, currently in the southern area of São Paulo, for the unit of São Bernardo, who will also earn a training center for employees, suppliers and dealers of the brand.
After that, in the second half of next year, the line of axles and suspensions of Hilux will be taken to the factory where the truck is mounted, in Zárate, Buenos Aires province. This will open a space in ABC unit that can be tapped to expand the production of auto parts on site or, on a more ambitious project-however, dependent on federal Government-stimulus, House a Prius assembly line.
Rafael Marques, President of the ABC metal workers Union, says the agreement signed with the company last month guarantees, at least from the labour side, the feasibility of new investments in São Bernardo. In addition to establishing benefits and wage adjustments for the next three years, the agreement, says Mahmood, relaxes the labor relations with the Bank's implementation of hours-tool that gives business agility to adapt working hours to the need of production and outsourcing activities.
The Union says that the factory is already equipped to be a kind of laboratory of testing the engines that will be produced in Porto Feliz, with the arrival of devices such as dynamometers, used to measure the power of the thrusters. Officially, Toyota has not yet manifested itself about this investment.
The project of Porto Feliz, according to Bastos, is ahead in one or two months as compared to the original schedule. But the Group's Executive says it's too early to say if the opening of the unit, budgeted at r $ 1 billion, will be bumped up. For now, follows the goal to make the opening in the spring of 2016.
Porto Feliz will begin producing engines for the Etios Compact with 60% domestic content. With that, the nationalization index of car, manufactured from August 2012 in Sorocaba (SP), 65% band will pass the 70% to 80% and between 85%. In line with the requirement for greater use of local content for the new automotive system, known as Innovate-Auto, the factory will also produce the engines for Corolla sedan starting in 2019.
The world's largest carmaker, but only placed seventh in the Brazilian ranking, Toyota has yet to run a lot to have in Brazil a presence more befitting its position in other major international markets. In the United States, for example, is the third brand, with more than 14% of total sales this year.
Despite this, their onslaught in the compact segment, the most popular in Brazil, has allowed him to resist the crisis which hits the marks of the front of the national auto industry. While the consumption of cars falls more than 7% this year, Toyota is one of the few automakers that still manage to grow. In the first half, its sales rose 3.5%, accounting for more than 5% of the consumption of cars in the country (see chart above).
According to Bastos de Sorocaba, factories and Indaiatuba are operating at full capacity. The line Etios wheel in the rhythm of 80 thousand vehicles per year and the Corolla should terminate 2014 "slightly above" the capacity of 70 thousand units annually. The sedan has a waiting list of almost two months and the two units are working overtime and on Saturdays, says the Executive. While the barrows market to close higher 5% fall 2014, Toyota predicts a growth around 1% compared with 176.1 thousand vehicles sold in 2013.