. Toyota Announces New President of North American
Manufacturing Headquarters
Toyota Motor Manufacturing
North America, Inc. (TMMNA) today announced Seiichi "Sean" Sudo
as its new president and CEO, succeeding Atsushi "Art" Niimi.
The effective date is June 27.
"I have been fortunate
to be president of our North American manufacturing operations during such
a time of rapid growth," said Mr. Niimi, who will return to Japan as
senior managing director of TMC. "I am confident that Seiichi Sudo
will be an excellent leader to manage this growth while continuing to
improve our vehicle quality."
During Mr. Niimi's tenure as
president, Toyota has announced or opened several major North American
facilities, including a truck plant in San Antonio, Texas, a truck bed and
vehicle plant in Baja California, Mexico, a casting plant in Jackson,
Tennessee, and an engine plant in Huntsville, Alabama. Many of Toyota's
North American plants have announced expansions during this time as well,
including the addition of hybrid vehicles in Georgetown, Kentucky and
building Hino trucks at TABC in Long Beach, California.
Seiichi Sudo joined Toyota in
1974 with a degree in mechanical engineering and worked his way up to
general manager of the Project Planning & Management Department of the
Production Control Division by 1998. Three years later, January 2001, Mr.
Sudo was named vice president at TMMNA in charge of production control and
corporate strategy until he was promoted to managing officer at TMC in
June 2003.
In addition, Toyota Motor
Corporation (TMC) announced today that Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada,
Inc. (TMMC) President Ray Tanguay was confirmed as a managing officer by
the TMC board of directors. Mr. Tanguay will also take on additional
responsibilities as a senior vice president of Toyota Motor North America,
Inc. (TMA) and as an executive vice president of TMMNA.
Ray Tanguay was named the
first Canadian President of Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada Inc., in
2002. Mr. Tanguay joined TMMC in 1991 as General Manager in charge of
general affairs and information systems. In 1993, he became Vice-President
in charge of manufacturing and engineering. He became Senior
Vice-President of TMMC in 2000, with responsibility for human resources,
general affairs, information systems, purchasing, and production control.
His leadership has been behind innovations in various areas at Toyota,
including information technology and logistics.
In a related announcement,
Steve St. Angelo, formerly vice president at TMMNA, was promoted to
executive vice president. Mr. St. Angelo will be responsible for
manufacturing and manufacturing support operations at Toyota Motor
Manufacturing, Kentucky (TMMK), where he will report to TMMK President
Gary Convis. Prior to joining Toyota earlier this year, Mr. St. Angelo
retired from General Motors after a 30-year career.
