By Keith Taylor
NKyTribune correspondent
GEORGETOWN — Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky celebrated its 30th anniversary Wednesday, opening its doors to the future while honoring the first three decades of success.
The company unveiled its new welcome center and donated $100,000 to several organizations, including a $30,000 contribution to the VEX robotics program in Scott County.
“We’re here to welcome the next 30 years of car-building in Kentucky and this is really fantastic for us,” Toyota Kentucky president Wil James said. “What’s the future look like? Here at TMMK, we have every reason to believe the future is bright.”
The facility broke ground in 1986 and the first Toyota Camry rolled off the assembly line two years later in 1988. Today, the plant employs 8,000 people and is the largest plant in the world. In addition to its Camry production, Toyota began producing the Lexus ES350 last fall, adding to its fleet of vehicles and engines. The plant has the ability to produce 550,000 vehicles and 600,000 engines annually.
In its humble beginnings, the facility employed 300 people, including current James, who began his career as a team leader on the assembly line.
“Those first few days, on the job, I could not imagine we were only a few months away from building our first car,” James said. “But in May (of) 1988, the first Camry came off the line just like we said it would. I knew then this plant was going to be a special place. The first 30 years has flown by.”
Former Kentucky Governor Martha Layne Collins, along with other local and state dignitaries, also were on hand to celebrate the milestone. One of the highlights of her administration as the state’s top official, Collins recalled what it took to beat out 25 other states to bring Toyota manufacturing to the Bluegrass and what has been achieved in the past 30 years.
“We had to figure out how we could outfox (the other states) and outwork them,” she said. “The competition was tough. I love competition. (The first 30 years) says a lot about Kentucky and we’re a good climate for businesses. It says that we have a good workforce and cooperation. I’m just proud in not only what we were able to do, but with what we were able to do in the last 30 years.”
As the company moves forward, construction currently is on the way on a new production engineering facility scheduled to be finished in 2017, relocating 300 engineering jobs to Georgetown. The new facility will include a state-of-the-art test lab and add 700 more employees. A makeover of the current facility also is the works to update aging equipment and a new paint shop. The plant also plans to invest in modern technology to streamline the process of building automobiles.
“For us, change is natural,” James said. “It’s what we do. Most importantly, changes like this will allow us to build even better cars for our customers. One of the huge changes we’re going through right now is changing the platform of our vehicles. While we did that, we would also take the opportunity to add in some of the newer car technologies and set the plant up to where it’s more flexible to build more than just sedans.
“We’ve had a great run with the Camry, 14 years in a row as the best-selling car, going forward and into the future, that can’t last forever. We would like to position ourselves to be able to be more flexible and nimble to handle the needs of the market. It’s important to do all the things necessary to keep this plant running at full capacity.”
Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin said the plant “has had a powerful impact on Kentucky’s economy over the past 30 years” and is looking forward to an even more productive future.
“There is no doubt Toyota is a strong community partner,” Bevin said. “We are truly grateful to have them in Kentucky.”
James said the union has proved to be beneficial for both parties.
“It’s been a win-win for Toyota here in Kentucky,” he said. “It’s been a great partnership.”
Keith Taylor is a senior sports writer for KyForward, where he primarily covers University of Kentucky sports, and a correspondent for the NKyTribune. Reach him at keith.taylor@kyforward.com or @keithtaylor21 on Twitter