US production for Aichi

Aichi Corp is to build a US production plant in Columbus, IN as part of a strategy to significantly boost its export sales. The company will begin construction of the plant in 2008 with production scheduled to start in 2009. Aichi aims to have more than 10 self-propelled products to sell in North America by the end of 2008.

The US plant - located in an area where Aichi's owner Toyota has several facilities - will play a significant part in its plans to grow its export business. Earlier this year, the company said it wanted to boost its annual sales to Yen 90 billion ($790 million) by its fiscal year 2010 (to March 2011), up almost a third from Yen 67.9 billion ($595 million) reported for its latest financial year to March 2007.

As part of the plan, export sales as a proportion of the total are scheduled to rise from last year's 10% to around 35% for the year to March 2011, or equivalent to Yen 32 billion ($280 million).