Toyota Production

Its mission is to rapidly instruct large numbers of mid-level plant managers from overseas and Japan in best practices. In addition to skill instruction, GPC provides facilities for V-comm* digital engineering, project preparation and global pilot production.

As well as smoothing preparation for model changes, Toyota’s GPC will play an essential role in maintaining high efficiency and high quality. Toyota sees increased support for overseas associates as essential to successful worldwide expansion. With over 50 manufacturing sites in 26 countries and locations worldwide, Toyota’s traditional system of support has been modified. A hard-nosed review of the traditional system revealed plenty of room for improvement.

While allowing flexibility at the application level within each plant, Toyota wanted a “common base” for manufacturing at Toyota plants worldwide. That meant finding the best practices and eliminating individual methods. Since Toyota traditionally taught skills on a person-to-person basis, knowledge was certain.

Drawing upon the great experience of its experts, Toyota selected and organized the best practices for each skill. Toyota used digital technology to put together these methods into “visual manuals,” keeping text to a minimum, while using photos along with short animation and video clips to assist rapid comprehension.

The GPC “best skill training area” is 8,000m2. Here, up to 130 trainees develop their skills on approximately 400 specially developed work tables and pieces of simulation equipment. In practicing “element work,” trainees gain the ability to perform each task within a consistent timeframe, which is essential to maintaining the time it takes for each worker to complete his or her job cycle time to keep an assembly line running smoothly.

By providing high-level standardized training to multiple employees simultaneously, Toyota has cut training time in half while raising the level of skill achievement. Toyota estimates that GPC multiplies instruction efficiency exceptionally. Besides assembly skills, GPC training packages include instruction in automotive knowledge, safety, and Toyota’s management values.