Before Toyota made cars, it made spinning machines. Founded in 1918 as a spinning and loom business, Toyota Boshoku ("boshoku" means spinning and weaving), is the precursor of what is now the world's second-largest automaker. So it was probably a natural when Toyota Boshoku, which specializes in car interiors, was looking for a place to locate a U.S. headquarters, it chose Greater Cincinnati, already home to the automaker's North American manufacturing headquarters. Toyota Boshoku America set up its U.S. headquarters in Erlanger, Ky. in 2004. Now, a major expansion is in the works, and the company credits the region's workforce and its central location for the choice to grow in Greater Cincinnati.
About 170 more headquarters jobs will be added to the 100 already working there, the company says. "This region offers the resources, talent and infrastructure to support our future efforts," says Kiyoshi "Nate" Furuta, chairman and CEO of Toyota Boshoku America. "We look forward to increasing our activities in Northern Kentucky." Total annual payroll after the hiring expansion is complete is expected to reach nearly $20 million, and the jobs include finance and accounting, human resources, production control, information technology, and corporate social responsibility.
Toyota Boshoku supplies everything from car seats to door panels to carpeting for major auto manufacturers, including Toyota and General Motors. Founded by Sakichi Toyoda, the company pioneered the famed production system that Toyota uses to make cars and which is now emulated across many industries. Sakichi's son, Kiichiro Toyoda, wanted to explore what was then a fledgling auto industry, and in 1937 Toyota Motor Corp. was born. TBA's expansion is the latest in the region for the Toyota family of companies. In addition to Toyota's North American manufacturing headquarters, its largest North American plant is a little more than an hour south of
Cincinnati in Georgetown, Ky. and a Midwest parts hub is located in Northern Kentucky. "Northern Kentucky and Greater Cincinnati have a truly diverse workforce, and we have a diverse workforce need in this home office," says TBA spokesman Warner Allen.
Writer: David Holthaus
Source: Warner Allen, Toyota Boshoku America
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