Gifu Auto Body – Factory Tour
Gifu Auto Body is one of the 13 Toyota final assembly plants in Japan. They were established as a truck body maker in 1940 to supply military trucks for Toyota. The company today mainly produces the Toyota HiAce van and Coaster bus and consistently receives the Toyota award for quality within the group.
Corporate Information
- Company: Gifu Auto Body
- Foundation: 1940
- Location: Gifu Prefecture
- Main Business: Automotive manufacturing
Gifu Auto Body – Lean Characteristics
TPS, Jidoka, Just-In-Time Production, 5S, TPM
Gifu Auto Body is one of the 13 Toyota final assembly plants in Japan and consistently receives the Toyota award for quality within the group. Their major product is the Toyota HiAce vehicle (they also manufacture emergency vehicles based on the HiAce design), and more recently in 2017 they also started manufacturing the Toyota Coaster bus.
Gifu Auto Body refers to their system as the Good Production System (GPS), but it is nothing but an excellent example of the Toyota Production System (TPS) at work.
The Shinka Management team includes three former managers from Gifu Auto Body, including Akinori Hyodo, a former factory manager and director of the plant. The visit provides a comprehensive and operator-level view of factory operations, coupled with insights from our Japanese senior consultants based on their 30+ years experience working in the plant. There are examples of electric kanban systems, just-in-time delivery, customized equipment and poka-yoke.
Gifu Auto Body has a clever use of space throughout the plant. This has been required over the years due to the expansion of operations within building size limitations. The life of older equipment has been extended considerably through 5S and TPM programs.
Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
I have thoroughly enjoyed the lean tour to Japan. Not only have I learned lots of new concepts that I’m keen to implement in our business, but I also loved the cultural experiences and insight into the people of Japan. The tour organizers bent over backward to make us feel welcome and anticipate our every…
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Bulle, Fribourg, Switzerland
I’m back from Japan where I visited one of Toyota’s final assembly line and several Toyota suppliers. After my China industrial tour in 2018, I was really impressed by the lean manufacturing study tour organized by Shinka Management. The tour was an opportunity to better understand the history behind the Toyota Production System and to…
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Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
Participating in the Shinka Management Lean Japan Tour was a transformative experience. The tour offered a rare opportunity to witness world-class lean practices in action at leading Japanese organisations. From visiting Toyota’s manufacturing facilities to learning directly from lean practitioners, every moment was an invaluable learning experience. The insights gained into kaizen, waste reduction, and…
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Quezon City, Manila, Philippines
Thank you, Shinka Management, for providing me with the opportunity to learn more about Kaizen. As a Quality practitioner, witnessing the evolution of Toyota and its implementation of Kaizen has been amazing. Learning how to adapt Kaizen principles from manufacturing for implementation within a hospital setting has been truly inspiring. Again, thank you Shinka Management!…
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Santiago, Chile
I must say thank you to the whole Shinka team – very grateful to meet you. The senseis and the Shinka team always cared about integrating us, teaching us and making us feel comfortable. The planning for the tour was brilliant. All my expectations were met. I saw TPS totally implemented, and it was amazing…
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Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
The Lean Japan Tour was well organized and full of passion, knowledge and hands-on practice. I was glad to join the program. Thanks a lot to the Shinka Management team.
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The Shinka Management Lean Japan Tour is a professional development program run several times annually. The program includes a mix of lean and kaizen seminars, hands-on lean training and visits to several benchmark lean companies. For further information and program dates, see the lean tour overview page.
Tour Inquiries
Interested in joining us in Japan? For additional information prior to registration please fill in the form provided or contact us.