Numbers, like words, need context to be properly understood. Year-to-year production rates, for example, provide lots of insight into a facility’s past, but little about its future survival or success. A better indicator of that is how much money has been invested in the plant for new equipment and expansion.
American Honda Motor Co. (AHMC) is well aware of this, and has invested nearly $5 billion in its main plant in Marysville, OH, since it opened in November 1982. The plant currently encompasses 3.6 million square feet, employs more than 4,000 people and can produce up to 440,000 Accord, Acura TLX and Acura ILX sedans annually.