Toyota Batangas Vehicle Center
Your next Toyota may come straight from the automaker’s latest, state-of-the-art, 32-hectare facility in Batangas City, which turned fully operational in the middle of 2021.
Located along Diversion Road, Balagtas, the brand-new Batangas Vehicle Center (BVC) is just six kilometers from the port which means it can receive imported vehicles from international vessels quicker and transport them via carriers easier so they can be tagged (using RFID stickers) and unloaded for faster processing.
Kaizen (continuous improvement) has been a core principle of Toyota Motor Philippines (TMP) for many years and it has lived up to it again by expanding its capabilities in prepping and delivering Toyota vehicles to all of its dealers nationwide with the BVC.
“The opening of the Batangas Vehicle Center reflects our confidence in the future. Beyond just expanding our capacity to receive and deliver the best quality Toyota vehicles, we are fully committing ourselves to manufacturing happiness and driving the Filipino people to a better tomorrow, with mobility for all,” said TMP Vice Chairman Alfred V. Ty.
The P4.7 billion BVC is only the second one ever made in the Asia Pacific region after Japan. It comes with a Pre-delivery Inspection and Processing Area where vehicles are cleaned/disinfected, fitted with accessories, and given a final check before these are sent to the Finished Goods yard which can accommodated 4,500 units at a time.
Keeping to their ‘just in time’ program, a weather-proof Car Carrier Loading and Unloading Area was also constructed. It has 18 truck lanes, 12 of which are dedicated for loading only. Its layout allows for natural light in the daytime and LED lamps to brighten it at night.
What makes the BVC truly world-class are the sustainable features incorporated into its design, which is in line with the automaker’s Environmental Challenge 2050. It comes with a Sewage Treatment Plant that filters all the used water prior to discharge into the waterways, a Material Recovery Facility that segregates and recycles solid waste, and a six-hectare green area that has been forested with native and fruit-bearing trees. In the pipeline are the installation of solar panels, building a rain-harvesting facility, and the construction of flood-control measures.
“In constructing the facilities, we have not forgotten our environmental responsibility as 26 percent of the land area have been dedicated to environmental management and conservation features. Furthermore, we are proud to be the first in Asia Pacific to have covered Car Carrier Truck Lanes after Toyota Motor Corporation in Japan. All these design principles make our processes safer and more sustainable,” said TMP President, Atsuhiro Okamoto.
The BVC currently has 1,123 employees (regular team member, support personnel, and outsourced manpower) and an annual capacity of 160,000 units at maximum production level with a two-shift, 24-hour operation system. With its opening, the Santa Rosa Vehicle Center can now focus solely on the growing demand for completely-knocked down (CKD) Vios and Innova models. Together, both centers will ensure an efficient and responsive vehicle logistics distribution system for TMP and its over 70 dealers all over the country.