Honda begins operations of its new plant in Itirapina

InvestSP helped attract the investment to the state of São Paulo

On Wednesday, March 27, the Japanese automaker, Honda Automóveis do Brasil, held the opening ceremony of its new car factory in Itirapina, in the state of São Paulo. With a nominal production capacity of 120,000 units per year, in two shifts, the plant will begin the activities with a daily production of 90 units of the Fit model and will rely on the experience of the employees transferred from the plant in Sumaré.

The governor of the state of São Paulo, João Doria, participated in the event and spoke about the relevance of the automotive industry in São Paulo. “The automotive industry has an important generation of value in its chain. Honda shows its confidence in São Paulo and Brazil by opening its second plant in the state,” said Doria.

InvestSP worked hard to make the company choose São Paulo during the construction of the plant, since other states such as Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro competed to receive the unit. Among the various services provided by the agency’s team, we highlight the location intelligence, which made it possible to find the appropriate area to meet the automaker’s needs.

In April 2018, the company announced the restructuring plan of its automotive production system in the country, which seeks to strengthen the competitiveness of the business. In line with this plan, Honda starts today the new operation with the billing of the first Fit produced at the plant. This month, the production of the model begins to be fully concentrated in Itirapina. Gradually, the other models produced in the country will also be produced in the unit. The completion of this transfer is expected to take place in 2021.

The activities that received recent investments will remain in Sumaré:  production of the powertrain, including Casting and Machining; Plastic Injection; Quality Engineering; Industrial Planning and Logistics. The unit also maintains the headquarters of Honda South America, the Automotive Research & Development Center, the Division of Parts and the Technical Training Center for dealerships.

“This moment is a great joy for everyone. Guided by our commitment to constant evolution, we are taking another important step towards strengthening our business in Brazil. Thanks to productivity gains, with integrated operations between the plants in Sumaré and Itirapina, we will make our operation in the country more competitive,” said Issao Mizoguchi, president of Honda South America.

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