As NUMMI winds down, Woodstock tools up.
Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada Inc. plans to add a second shift in March at an assembly plant in Woodstock, Ontario to build more RAV4 sport utility models.
TMMC also builds the Corolla, Matrix, and the Lexus RX350 at the plant. The latest move will add more than 800 jobs when the second shift starts.
Production of the RAV4 began in November 2008 with one-shift. Toyota now says it will now build the majority of RAV4s for the North American market in Ontario.
“Thanks to the high demand for this popular vehicle, we are able to increase production in Woodstock,” said Ray Tanguay, president of TMMC.
The additional 800 jobs will boost the total TMMC employment to approximately 6,500. TMMC has manufactured vehicles since November 1988 and has the capacity to build 420,000 units annually.
The announcement of the added shift is the first expansion of production by Toyota in North America since the collapse of Lehman Brothers in September 2008. Over the past year, Toyota has been cutting production.
Toyota is also planning to shut down the New United Motor Manufacturing plant in Fremont, Calif. in 2010, idling about 4,000 workers. The California plant also builds Corolla’s Matrix and Tacoma pickup truck in Toyota’s largest U.S. market.