GM Thailand celebrates one million units at Rayong

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GM Thailand and Southeast Asia Operations recently celebrated the production of its millionth vehicle – a Chevrolet Trailblazer – since operations began in 2000 at the Rayong assembly plant. The celebration coincided with a visit by GM CEO Mary Barra and president Dan Ammann.

GM’s facility in Rayong houses 4,300 employees. One of five new plants built outside North America in the late 1990s, Rayong incorporates GM’s Global Manufacturing System (GMS), a production system based on the principles of lean manufacturing. The main elements of GMS include employee involvement, continuous improvement, standardisation, short lead-time and built-in quality.

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Rayong has the ability to produce different models and variants on the same line without incurring unnecessary downtime. This enabled the facility to successfully launch a totally renewed lineup in the past two years. The facility enjoyed record exports last year, shipping almost 44,000 vehicles to 77 countries including Malaysia.

Barra and Ammann also visited GM Thailand’s Powertrain Facility and congratulated the team for building 100,000 engines from its opening in September 2011 to May 2013. GM’s only diesel engine plant in the region is producing second-generation four-cylinder Duramax turbodiesel engines for the Chevy Colorado pick-up truck and Trailblazer SUV.

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Danny Tan

Danny Tan loves driving as much as he loves a certain herbal meat soup, and sweet engine music as much as drum beats. He has been in the auto industry since 2006, previously filling the pages of two motoring magazines before joining this website. Enjoys detailing the experience more than the technical details.

 

Comments

  • Carlover on Feb 18, 2014 at 3:34 pm

    Malaysia, where are you? Still talking and talking with NAP. But Thailand still moving forward with unstable politic issue. So don’t talk so much or just come out nice presentation without proper action plan and breakthrough implementation.. New NAP still got protection and many policy issue not solve.. who want to do business in country with so many protection and limitation.. Malaysia, pls wake up and moving forward… Competitor wouldn’t wait you…

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 43 Thumb down 1
    • wake up on Feb 18, 2014 at 4:39 pm

      Just forget it, even with the abolition of NAP or whatever policy. No manufacture going to invest in Malaysia after spending billion on their factory in Thailand.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 10 Thumb down 2
    • carguy2000 on Feb 18, 2014 at 5:39 pm

      maybe just a maybe, why pushing so hard to become a car makers. the industries is very costly, hazard for environment, difficult to sell, to much man power involved. Singapore didn’t make any car and also recently Australia but the general economic growth still prosper. just think about it. maybe someone at your country did think about it already but the cronies would not let their cash cow vanish..

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 5 Thumb down 2
      • automotive on Feb 19, 2014 at 10:12 am

        do you know that automotive industry can bring lot more job opportunities to the people? chain reaction dude…

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 1
    • Universiti Tahi Malaysia (UiTM) on Feb 18, 2014 at 5:39 pm

      See how much Malaysia lost? In the 80s and 90s we were on our way of becoming the Detroit of Asia. Everybody set up CKD plants in Malaysia. Even prestigious brands like BMW and Mercedes.

      Then MITI started protecting Proton and telling all the other brands how much to price their cars. Strict rule, cannot undercut Proton by a RM20k margin. Then MITI started the AP nonsense and all the bumiputera policy ie suppliers of parts must be bumi company.

      All the car brands ran to Thailand. Now, they made Thailand the Detroit of Asia. What did we lose? 2 things.
      1) We lost hundreds of billions in US Dollars in investment. May even run in the trilllions

      2) Hundreds of thousands of jobs lost.

      3) MSC’s K Society (Knowledge Economy) went down the drain. More brain drain happened. More skilled people left Malaysia in the past 30 years.

      All to protect Proton’s 30,000 dungu workers (including part suppliers)

      Which is better? Protect 30,000 crony workers or lose hundreds of thousands of jobs?

      If you cannot understand maybe in figures now….

      30,000 jobs VS 500,000 jobs.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 28 Thumb down 5
      • in the 80’s n 90’s Bolehland becoming Detroit of Asia?..which manufacturer available during that time that making boleh as Detroit of Asia.
        i know oni 1 in 80’s plus 1 in 90’s for mass produce..partly M n partly D-T respectively…up to year 2000 they make up 90-95% car production in boleh…mercedes/bmw is negligible..up to year 2006 as biggest passenger car producer..

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 5 Thumb down 9
        • 4G63T DSM on Feb 19, 2014 at 10:02 am

          KZM, you are missing the big picture. Its a lot worst than this.

          In the 80s leading up to the 90s, Malaysia was the manufacturing hub of ASEAN. We were the first pick of countries that wanted to set up a manufacturing plant. And its not only Cars. Everything from electronics, computer components were made here.

          This is because, we had good infrastructure, our workforce were still relatively cheap and HIGHLY EDUCATED (and spoke ENGLISH) and we have good accessibility to raw materials.

          Everything went down the drain soon after we decided to protect Bumi interest (yes, including education).

          Investors just move away.

          As for you, yes, there may have been only a few players in the market then, but as ASEAN began to grow, their demand for cars will increase.

          If just one single plant can do up 1 MIL in 14 years. Imagine how many cars we would be exporting annually with the combined manufacturing might of Honda, Toyota-Daihatsu, Mercedes, BMW, Ford, GM and Volvo.

          UiTM hit the nail squarely.

          Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 4
          • electronic n electronic part boleh still among the biggest exporter…

            u forget our current education now based on merit..u remember when first time merit based qualification was implement..more b*** going to further their education in ipta…which cause other race ask for merit review..UiTM is different the sole purpose of UITM to help b*** to further study form by MARA(u know MARA rite) not gov..what is the different with SJK(C) n SJK(T)..

            Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 2
          • Low Budget on Feb 19, 2014 at 12:26 pm

            Malaysia was one of the Asean tigers during the nineties and then hundred of thousands good brains left the country and now almost brain dead, she only qualifies as Kittens now (the domestic kind), this is why the phrase ‘Jaguh Kampung’ becomes more and more appropriate..

            Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 2
          • Michael on Feb 20, 2014 at 9:31 am

            Still spreading racism again kzm? Every post of yours, you must have some racist comment. Come on friend, stop being a batu api and live muhibbah. Already you get free biasiswa and kontrak and housing discounts also, you still want to dengki other people?

            Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 1
          • Not me who start person above me who start it…ur comment moreless oso racist n u want me to stop talking?..im oni retaliate other people comment who i feel racist….this is free country summore.. i can write anything i want..wat u police? govt? ask la gov to arrest me under I*A if it still available la…
            ..i will stop being like that if u guy do the same

            Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
    • Carlover on Feb 19, 2014 at 3:32 pm

      By the way, big car players normally setup manufacturing at Thailand or Indonesia then setup regional HQ at Singapore. What Malaysia get??? MITI and ministers, pls wake up and don’t just visit here and there without doing work for country and rakyat…

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 0
  • Samad Jain on Feb 18, 2014 at 7:06 pm

    Malaysian is too busy squabbling, bitting each others neck over petty issues….while business are moving away unfortunately.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 5 Thumb down 0
  • MITI main objective is to protect local business. Not like any other ASEAN country. U tak suka u keluar!

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 9 Thumb down 13
  • Albert Lee on Feb 18, 2014 at 9:42 pm

    They are protecting local business.You are half correct.They are protecting crony related local business.U should keluar.I think u suka pay taxes to those people who orders binoculars (worth RM100)with a astronomical price tag of rm3000 per pair.You should be Encik Ripoff.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 19 Thumb down 2
  • Sam Loo on Feb 20, 2014 at 9:21 am

    Bolehland still talks about NEP, and NAP is one of the parasitic spin offs

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 0
 

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