May 19, 2003 – Toyoda Gosei Co., Ltd., announced today that its Czech subsidiary, TG Safety Systems Czech, s.r.o.*1 (TGSSC), held an official grand opening ceremony on May 8, 2003, to mark the recent start-up of full-fledged manufacturing operations. The opening ceremony was attended by Vice Minister Zdenek Vorlícek of the Czech Ministry of Trade and Industry and other distinguished guests, while Toyoda Gosei’s Chairman Tokio Horigome and President Takashi Matsuura and Toyota Tsusho’s Chairman Eizo Takeyama flew in from Japan to take part in the ceremony.
The result of a joint venture with Toyota Tsusho Corporation to manufacture steering wheels and airbags for automobiles, TGSSC was established in the Czech Republic city of Klásterec nad Ohrí in February 2001. With capital of 600 million Czech Koruna (2,390 million yen), 80 percent of which was contributed by Toyoda Gosei and 20 percent by Toyota Tsusho, TGSSC completed construction of its 48,000 square-foot (4,500 m²) plant on a 6.2-acre (25,000 m²) site and began production in April 2002. Quickly expanding its production volume and sales within its first year, TGSSC recently moved to full-scale operations.
The Czech plant is strategically important for Toyoda Gosei’s Safety Systems business unit, which is expanding its operations to provide world-class products to global automobile manufacturers. TGSSC forms an important pillar in Toyoda Gosei’s global production network of safety systems in four major markets: Japan, Asia, the Americas, and Europe. As more and more automobile makers procure automobile parts on a global basis from suppliers with global production networks, it has become crucially important for Toyoda Gosei to expand its production capabilities and build a strong presence in Europe in order to secure worldwide business. Toyoda Gosei is now able to further enhance relationships with its customers in the U.S. and Japan who purchase parts according to global procurement policies and needs.
TGSSC employs 120 people as of the end of April 2003 and plans to expand its employment to about 350 by the end of 2004. It recorded sales of 111 million Czech Koruna (450 million yen) in 2002 and has a projected annual sales of 1.1 billion Czech Koruna (4.5 billion yen) in 2004. The company’s three directors currently consist of two executives from Toyoda Gosei and one from Toyota Tsusho.
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(1) s.r.o. (spolecnost s rucením omezenym) : Limited Liability Company