Assembly Lines
Honda produces cars and SUVs in state-of-the-art plants across the world. Employing over 23,000 associates at plants throughout North America – such as Marysville, East Liberty, Russell’s Point, and Anna – with both domestic and global parts used for production, these facilities produce various vehicles, including the popular Accord and Civic models as well as their SUV counterpart CR-V CRV’s being made in both nations.
Honda’s CR-V SUV has quickly become one of the most sought-after models on North American roadways, ranking fifth overall and becoming its most profitable SUV model. Producing it at its Alliston, Ontario plant has proven more cost-efficient than production facilities located in Ohio or Indiana – this decision being an incentive for Honda to move production lines from America into Canada.
As part of its efforts to expand, Ford is investing significantly in a production hub dedicated to electric vehicles that will include Marysville Auto Plant (MAP), East Liberty Auto Plant (ELP), and Anna Engine Plant (AEP). By 2026, this hub will begin manufacturing battery electric vehicles from its new e: Architecture model sold through sales channels.
United States facilities of this company have made great efforts to reduce their environmental impact and have achieved ENERGY STAR certification. Their initiatives have reduced energy consumption and emissions while conserving natural resources and reducing waste. They have implemented energy-saving technologies such as paint booth technology and automated guided vehicles that transport parts between receiving docks and assembly lines.
The company has also taken steps to safeguard the health of its workers during a pandemic by creating COVID-19 Safety & Health Guidelines for plants and suppliers to help limit infection spread, with shower installations, workstation redesign, enhanced sanitation procedures, as well as offering free hotlines to report concerns directly.
Paint Booths
Automobile manufacturing involves more than mechanical engineering – it involves art. A great car must also capture drivers worldwide. To reach this goal, vehicles must be constructed using top-of-the-line paints; East Liberty Auto Plant utilizes state-of-the-art equipment in their paint booths to guarantee top-quality finishes on each car produced at their plant.
Honda was known for pioneering many innovative techniques and technologies during its early years, such as its module transfer machine system, which enabled parts to be moved easily between different areas of a vehicle. This innovation represented a great leap forward for the production of cars and furthered Honda’s goal of creating top-quality automobiles around the globe.
This system was used on the first large-model motorcycle production line at Hamamatsu Factory in 1981. EG also developed the general body welding (GW) machine used by the Sayama Factory and then the Suzuka Factory, which greatly enhanced speed and quality vehicle production, helping Honda cars remain more competitive.
Honda’s participation in motorsports is one of the cornerstones of its corporate culture. It is rooted in founder Soichiro Honda’s love for motorcycles, cars, and racing and his dream to build world-class automobiles. Furthermore, its involvement in motorsports also serves an integral purpose within society as part of its contribution.
Honda initiated its Hometown Forest initiative in 1978, planting trees around their factories as an environmental protection strategy and to increase resident welfare. Professor Akira Miyawaki from Yokohama National University suggested that businesses cultivate greenery groves to protect their local environment and residents; Honda accepted his challenge.
Honda first established a Thai Tooling Office (EG-B) to support mass-production plants across Asia. Soon after that, in May of 1988, they founded EG-E (Honda Engineering Europe Ltd), and in March of 1990, they inaugurated Honda Research & Development America (HRAD).
Parts Receiving Docks
Honda purchases $25.5 billion of production parts annually from more than 800 original equipment suppliers in North America, many located along Interstate 75’s “automotive corridor” from Detroit through Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Georgia. To facilitate supplier deliveries directly into Honda plants more efficiently, Honda operates a network of cross docks; Ceva operates one at their East Liberty plant that handles approximately 130 trucks daily from as far west as Nebraska to as far south as Texas; they sort these deliveries into shuttles that travel throughout its plant network – trucks or intermodal trains depending on which plant their intended destination may go directly.
Honda assembly plants feature other logistics points, primarily cross docks and consolidation centers, that help ensure smooth manufacturing operations. These facilities handle most of the components used during car production – cutting back on truck trips with their cargo trailers while improving the efficiency of goods moving through production lines.
According to Dana McBrien, associate chief advisor, company leadership is constantly seeking ways to enhance supply chain operations, including more effectively aligning incoming material management with outgoing orders. Where supply chain was once seen as cost center function; now it serves an invaluable strategic purpose by efficiently meeting internal and customer demands.”
One of the company’s most significant challenges has been a shortage of drivers. As a result, they have had to switch from live loading and unloading – where trucks pull up directly to delivery docks for direct handling – to “drop and hook,” in which trailers are left at yards for other loads or empty pickup. This allows trucks to quickly return to the highway for other deliveries while eliminating long truck queues at yards.
Most of Honda’s North American plants feature consolidation centers where workers pack or repack parts to maximize sea container load utilization for shipping to seaports. Marysville and East Liberty plants boast such centers; others can be found in London, Ontario, for shipments between US plants to Canada; Knoxville, Tennessee; and Celaya, Mexico.
Assembly Line Maintenance
Maintenance is vital to keeping any production line running efficiently, saving costs in repairs while avoiding downtime and workload costs. Regular inspection can prevent costly repairs and reduce workload and operational expenses.
Maintaining a factory requires meticulous planning and preparation. Ensuring you have all the appropriate tools available is critical, as is keeping all parts. When purchasing new assembly line tools or replacing worn components, it’s always better to act before they break entirely down, as it will save both time and money in maintenance costs.
Honda East Liberty Plant is a world-class automotive manufacturing facility and employs over 23,000 associates throughout the US. These associates build Honda and Acura vehicles, power equipment products, the HondaJet Elite II aircraft, and flexible manufacturing capabilities that enable it to adapt its production lines based on market demands and consumer desire.
Many of these workers are well acquainted with machinery. As they know what to listen for and when to act, they are better at quickly recognizing when something goes wrong and can troubleshoot more effectively to reduce downtime.
Keeping your production lines running smoothly can be difficult, but you can make life simpler by always having essential tools on hand. This will enable you to replace broken down parts promptly when they break or require repair and prevent downtime caused by waiting for necessary details. In addition, all technicians must receive adequate training – this will prevent them from making unsafe modifications or adjustments that disrupt an assembly line’s workflow.
Honda East Liberty Plant offers state-of-the-art testing facilities, including a 7.5-mile high-speed oval test track, skid pad, and SMARTCenter. Furthermore, this facility houses engineers, test drivers, and technical specialists with expertise in vehicle safety, stability, fuel economy, noise emissions testing, and crash testing.
