BANGKOK: Honda Automobile (Thailand) Co has begun production of complete engine and engine parts at its new plant in Rojana Industrial Park, Prachinburi, Thailand.
The start of engine production line confirms that the company is ready to kick off the new plant’s manufacturing operation as one of the most technologically advanced and most eco-friendly automobile assembly plants of Honda in Asia and Oceania. The first model to be manufactured at the plant will be the new 10th-generation Civic, which will be launched this March.
The new engine production line will manufacture engine components, including cylinder blocks, cylinder heads, connecting rods, and crankshafts for complete assembly cars at the new plant. In the beginning of operation, it will produce engines for Civic: a 1.8-litre engine and a new 173bhp 1.5-litre VTEC Turbo engine for the Thai market.
In the future, the engine production line will also produce both complete engines and engine parts for the export to other Honda automobile assembly plants in the Asia and Oceania region. The engine production line is the second line to have become operational at the new plant after the Polymer Injection (PO) line that began operation in October 2015. Complete assembly car production is scheduled to start full operation within this March.
According to Pitak Pruittisarikorn, Chief Operating Officer of Honda Automobile (Thailand) Co, “The new Prachinburi plant is a key move taken by Honda to expand our automobile production in Thailand with an aim to be a strategic export hub for the world. A new Prachinburi plant will support our manufacturing and export operations currently done by the Thai production base in Ayutthaya to meet growing customer demand worldwide in the future. The start of the Prachinburi plant and the Civic production kick-off will mark a milestone of Honda’s operation in Thailand.”
