By Atlanta Business Chronicle
Yamaha Motor Co. Ltd. will announce today at a press conference it will transfer its all-terrain vehicle production currently in Japan to its plant in Newnan, GA.
The production capacity of Yamaha Motor's Japanese subsidiary-Yamaha Motor Powered Products Co. Ltd.-will be integrated into Yamaha Motor's U.S. subsidiary based in Newnan, Yamaha Motor Manufacturing Corporation of America.
The company said the move starts May 2011 and is intended to optimize manufacturing capacity and improve productivity. The move will maximize production in the United States, the country with the largest demand for ATVs. The transfer to Newnan is expected to be complete by 2013.
The Newnan plant currently manufactures ATVs ranging in engine size from 250cc to 421cc. The production transfer will increase the facility's production lineup to include a wide range of Yamaha ATVs up to models with large 700cc engines. The Newnan plant will also continue to manufacture golf carts, personal watercraft and Side-by-Side vehicles.
The Newnan plant now employs more than 1,100. Yamaha estimates adding up to 200 additional jobs over the next three to five years based on the ATV production transfers and forecasts as the economy improves for all production. Yamaha has the opportunity to add 800 to 1,000 if or when the factory ultimately reaches full capacity.
