Toyota Motor Corporation said this morning in Japan that it is establishing what it calls the Hydrogen Factory, a dedicated organization to accelerate customer-oriented product development and production in fuel cell or hydrogen-related products by strengthening alliances with local partners in Europe and China, where the hydrogen mobility market is rapidly expanding.
The goal is to promote sustainable commercialization of hydrogen fuels. The former Hydrogen business area will be abolished as a result. This is in keeping with the global auto industry’s moves toward sustainable fuels.
All the new development and production will all be conducted in one place under Mitsumasa Yamagata who had diverse responsibilities working at the Toyota System Supply Vehicle Development Center as the Senior General Manager and Powertrain Company President, as well as being in charge of HEV development at GAZOO Racing. Yoshihiko Hamamura and Shinichi Yasui* become Chief Project Leaders at the Hydrogen Factory.
*Shinichi Yasui was executive vice president, Toyota Motor North America, Research & Development. A 35-year Toyota veteran, Yasui has been a member of Toyota’s North American Executive Committee since 2017, leading the company’s R&D operations in the region. Yasui joined TMC in 1988 as an engineer, developing air bag systems, seats and seat belts. Over the years he held a variety of engineering and product planning roles and in 2013, became chief engineer for all Corolla models. In 2016, he was appointed executive general manager of product planning at TMC’s Mid-Size Vehicle Company before becoming executive vice president at TMNA. Yasui holds a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from Meiji University in Tokyo and an Executive MBA from the University of Michigan. His North America replacement has not been named.
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About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn.
He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe.
Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap.
AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks.
Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.
Toyota Motor Establishes Hydrogen Factory
Toyota Motor Corporation said this morning in Japan that it is establishing what it calls the Hydrogen Factory, a dedicated organization to accelerate customer-oriented product development and production in fuel cell or hydrogen-related products by strengthening alliances with local partners in Europe and China, where the hydrogen mobility market is rapidly expanding.
The goal is to promote sustainable commercialization of hydrogen fuels. The former Hydrogen business area will be abolished as a result. This is in keeping with the global auto industry’s moves toward sustainable fuels.
All the new development and production will all be conducted in one place under Mitsumasa Yamagata who had diverse responsibilities working at the Toyota System Supply Vehicle Development Center as the Senior General Manager and Powertrain Company President, as well as being in charge of HEV development at GAZOO Racing. Yoshihiko Hamamura and Shinichi Yasui* become Chief Project Leaders at the Hydrogen Factory.
*Shinichi Yasui was executive vice president, Toyota Motor North America, Research & Development. A 35-year Toyota veteran, Yasui has been a member of Toyota’s North American Executive Committee since 2017, leading the company’s R&D operations in the region. Yasui joined TMC in 1988 as an engineer, developing air bag systems, seats and seat belts. Over the years he held a variety of engineering and product planning roles and in 2013, became chief engineer for all Corolla models. In 2016, he was appointed executive general manager of product planning at TMC’s Mid-Size Vehicle Company before becoming executive vice president at TMNA. Yasui holds a master’s degree in mechanical engineering from Meiji University in Tokyo and an Executive MBA from the University of Michigan. His North America replacement has not been named.
AutoInformed on
About Ken Zino
Ken Zino, editor and publisher of AutoInformed, is a versatile auto industry participant with global experience spanning decades in print and broadcast journalism, as well as social media. He has automobile testing, marketing, public relations and communications experience. He is past president of The International Motor Press Assn, the Detroit Press Club, founding member and first President of the Automotive Press Assn. He is a member of APA, IMPA and the Midwest Automotive Press Assn. He also brings an historical perspective while citing their contemporary relevance of the work of legendary auto writers such as Ken Purdy, Jim Dunne or Jerry Flint, or writers such as Red Smith, Mark Twain, Thomas Jefferson – all to bring perspective to a chaotic automotive universe. Above all, decades after he first drove a car, Zino still revels in the sound of the exhaust as the throttle is blipped during a downshift and the driver’s rush that occurs when the entry, apex and exit points of a turn are smoothly and swiftly crossed. It’s the beginning of a perfect lap. AutoInformed has an editorial philosophy that loves transportation machines of all kinds while promoting critical thinking about the future use of cars and trucks. Zino builds AutoInformed from his background in automotive journalism starting at Hearst Publishing in New York City on Motor and MotorTech Magazines and car testing where he reviewed hundreds of vehicles in his decade-long stint as the Detroit Bureau Chief of Road & Track magazine. Zino has also worked in Europe, and Asia – now the largest automotive market in the world with China at its center.