Honda is committed to its UK manufacturing base in Swindon and can meet 60% of European sales requirements from its factories there and in Turkey, according to Honda UK Manufacturing chief engineer Mike Godfrey.
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Output in Turkey – which builds the four-door Civic sedan only – has just been doubled to 50,000 and could be doubled again.
“Our European manufacturing capacity is 300,000 units which means we can meet 60% of current sales,” Godfrey said.
Maximum capacity at Swindon, which employs 4,200, is 250,000 vehicles a year and the plant exports to 60 different countries.
The two-millionth Swindon-built car, a silver CR-V SUV came off the line at the end of last week.
Honda has invested GBP22m in a new plastic injection and painting facility capable of moulding and painting 1,300 sets of bumpers for the Civic and CR-V each day, said Godfrey.
“It means we can make and paint on the site rather than use lorries,” he said.
This is part of a further GBP80m investment in Swindon where Honda started manufacturing 22 years ago.
The engine plant is gaining a new GBP16m facility which will enable it to independently cast diesel blocks, a process which, until now, has only been carried out at Honda in Japan.
A further GBP50m is being spent on welding and paint production technology, increasing efficiency and production flexibility.
Swindon plant has boosted output 25% over the last 18 months, with the company’s UK sales operation breaking through the 100,000-unit barrier for the first time in 2007.
