Expansion of Vehicle Wire Harness Production Center in the Philippines
- Increased output to accommodate new orders of goods for global vehicles primarily targeting the North American market -
Furukawa Automotive Systems Inc. (Headquarters: Inukami-gun, Shiga Prefecture; President: Katsumi Shibata; “Furukawa Automotive Systems” below), a member of the Furukawa Electric Group, has secured new orders for vehicle wire harnesses (“W/H” below) for global vehicles primarily targeting the North American market, and will increase the production capacity of its center in the Philippines as a result.
Background
With the worldwide production volume of automobiles gradually rising, “global vehicles” (automobiles created for the global market) are now designed on the assumption of overseas manufacture as well as for export from Japan, and automobile manufacturers are manufacturing and selling these vehicles worldwide as leading models.
In terms of the W/H business, this trend allows us to move from existing practices of producing goods locally for local consumption to regionally-optimized production that satisfies criteria such as available workforce and product quality.
Details
Furukawa Automotive Systems has secured new W/H orders for global vehicles primarily targeting the North American market, and following this, the company will expand the production capacity of its wholly-owned center in the Philippines (Furukawa Automotive Systems Lima Philippines Inc.).
In response to changes in the business environment that have made it possible to move from local production for local consumption toward regionally-optimized production of goods, satisfying criteria such as cost and product quality, we have shifted our structure from single-region production in Mexico to regionally-optimized production in two regions, through the addition of the Asian region (Philippines and Vietnam), where our main W/H factories are located. This has allowed us to secure new orders for W/H targeting the North American market.
This investment comes as part of our mid-term management plan to strengthen key businesses, and through further reinforcement of our global W/H production structure, we will continue to satisfy to the needs of Japanese vehicle manufacturers, as well as other manufacturers.
Expansion Details
Total investment | Approx. 10 billion yen (includes factory building/land purchases, new construction of facilities/warehouses, etc.) |
---|---|
Articles to produce | Wire harnesses for vehicles |
Site planned for expansion | Furukawa Automotive Systems Lima Philippines Inc. (President) Masahito Tokuda Phase 2A Block 2-Lot 3, Lima Technology Center, Lipa City, Batangas, Philippines Established January 2012 |
FALP | Current | After expansion |
---|---|---|
Area of buildings (production zones) | Approx. 24,000m2 | Approx. 50,000m2 (New buildings to be completed February 2019) |
Site area | Approx. 120,000m2 | Approx. 180,000m2 |
Number of employees | Approx. 5,500 | Approx. 8,500 |
About Furukawa Electric Group
Furukawa Electric (TSE; 5801, ISIN; JP3827200001) Group started business in 1884, when its copper-smelting facility and wire manufacturing factory was established. Since then Furukawa Electric has become pioneers in the latest technologies by addressing diverse technological issues. Furukawa Electric has released products in a number of areas, including telecommunications, electronics, automobiles, and construction, with the three types of materials it works with at their core, namely, optics, plastics, and metals. Many of these products have attained the top global market share, and all of its products have contributed to society in numerous business areas. Furukawa Electric reported consolidated revenues of JPY 967.3 billion (approximately USD 8.7B) for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2018.