Toyota Motor Sales USA is expanding its Product Quality Field Office programme to four additional US regional sales areas.
The move, the company said, follows the success of a pilot programme launched in the New York region in late 2009.
Go deeper with GlobalData
TMS will officially open its next Product Quality Field Office in San Francisco this month, and an additional three offices across the US during the next 12 months. Toyota Canada (TCI) announced that it will establish Product Quality Field Offices in Toronto and Calgary, for a total of seven offices across North America.
Staffed by technical and engineering specialists, the offices will enhance the company’s ability to detect, analyse and respond to customer and quality issues in the field.
Product Quality Field Offices are being established with the mandate to investigate specific field quality issues related to unique regional, geographical or environmental conditions in each area.
The New York region office was developed to investigate the performance of Toyota, Lexus and Scion vehicles in cold weather climates, with an emphasis on corrosion issues. The new San Francisco office will focus on hybrid vehicle systems and durability, capitalising on the high concentration of these vehicles in the California market.
US Tariffs are shifting - will you react or anticipate?
Don’t let policy changes catch you off guard. Stay proactive with real-time data and expert analysis.
By GlobalDataToyota is currently evaluating opening additional offices in Jacksonville, FL to focus on heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) and drivability; Houston, TX to concentrate on trucks and chassis components; and Denver, CO to study high altitude performance and SUV models.
Offices in Toronto and Calgary will focus on extreme seasonal temperature changes and high road salt usage, as well as unique vehicle operating conditions.
“Everyone at Toyota is working aggressively to understand what our customers are experiencing and to respond quickly to their needs by enhancing our information gathering capabilities,” said Dino Triantafyllos, vice president, Quality Division, Toyota Motor Engineering and Manufacturing (TEMA).
“The expansion of our Product Quality Field Offices initiative is one example of the significant changes we are making across our North American operations to help ensure that we are a quality-focused and responsive organisation.”
Product Quality Field Offices will also provide technical support to dealership service personnel and Regional Field Staff; and “specialised response” capabilities for Toyota’s Swift Market Analysis Response Teams (SMART), which play a key role in Toyota’s rapid-response investigations into customer reports of unintended acceleration.
