Tag Archives: Thailand

Triumph winds down Hinckley production

Triumph Motorcycle will move more of its production from Hinckley in the UK to Thailand in a bid to target rapidly growing Asian markets.

In 2002, Triumph opened its first factory in Thailand where it now has three facilities making about 80% of last year’s total of 60,131 bikes.

There are also factories in Brazil and India supplying for the local markets.

And last month Triumph announced an agreement with Baja to build a range of 200-750cc motorcycles in India.

Proposed Triumph 250Proposed Triumph 250

Hinckley factory

Their factory in Hinckley, Leicestershire, mainly makes engine components and will become a research and development centre.

It will continue to build their new Triumph Factory Custom (TFC) motorcycles with production wound down from about 6500 a year to about 4500.

Triumph Thruxton and Rocket 3 TFC ace diamondTriumph Thruxton and Rocket 3 TFC

They will lay off about 50 workers on the assembly line, paint shop and weld shop.

However, they will add about 20 design engineer jobs in their upgraded R&D facility.

Thai advantages

Apart from the cost advantages of making bikes in Thailand, most major component suppliers are nearby, including an Ohlins factory.

Australia also has a free trade agreement with Thailand, which keeps a lid on prices.

Triumph boss Nick Bloor says the move is part of “Triumph’s next wave of strategic growth”.

“We want to maximise the growth opportunity for the brand globally, particularly in the Asian markets,” he says.

“This is why we are increasing our design resources here in the UK, and focusing our mass-production capabilities in Thailand.

“There will still be manufacturing capability in the UK but the role of our facility in Hinckley will be reconfigured to enable us to create a more flexible and high-value capability.”

Leicestershire automotive jobs have taken a big hit in recent weeks with Norton Motorcycles closing down and going into administration amid allegations of fraud, misappropriated government funding and unpaid taxes.

Source: MotorbikeWriter.com

Harley plans sub-500cc motorcycle

Harley-Davidson plans to produce a sub-500cc motorcycle for the Asian market in collaboration with a local manufacturer within the next year.

It wouldn’t be the smallest motorcycle they’ve ever made. That would be the 1970s 90cc monkey bike pictured above.

The sub-500cc bike plan is included in the company’s ‘More Roads’ initiative, a strategic long-term plan, says Harley head honcho Matt Levatich.

“More Roads progress in Q1 included steps towards a partnership for a premium small displacement offering in Asia, to expand our reach in that region,” he says.

“We are just over a year away from launching our first model that will help provide access to millions of customers in emerging markets in the region.”

Sub-500cc collaboration

The small-capacity bike will be built in collaboration with a “local” motorcycle manufacturer.

It could be a similar venture to BMW’s alliance with the Indian TVS company to build the G 310 models or the Bajaj Auto deal to build a third of KTM’s bikes at their Chakan plant.

BMW G 310 R top seller build small sub
BMW G 310 R

It seems strange that Harley would need a local partner as they already make the Street family of 500cc and 750cc motorcycles in India as well as Kansas.

The Indian-made Street models are sold in markets outside of Asia, including Australia and New Zealand.

However, there is no talk yet of the new sub-500cc bike being available in other markets.

The new sub-500cc motorcycles could also be built in Thailand where Harley started making motorcycles for the Asian market late last year.

Harley-Davidson Australia spokesman Keith Waddell says the company has confirmed to them that “motorcycles for Australia will not be assembled in Thailand”.

More Roads strategy

Matt pointed out that their More Roads strategy was part of their business plan to deal with the “very real pressures we’re facing across the global motorcycle industry, including the impact of the ongoing trade wars”.

“Today we participate in segments that represent approximately 40% of the global 601+cc volume,” Matt says.

“When we deliver our new mid-weight motorcycles under More Roads, we will compete in segments representing nearly 90% of that global volume. Add to that, the opportunities we have in global lower displacement and electric segments.”

Last July, Harley announced a number of new models over the next couple of years.

They include the launch in September of their first electric motorcycle, the LiveWire, plus their first adventure bike, the Pan America, a new midweight streetfighter class and electric bicycles.

Harley electric bicycles sharing sub
Harley electric bicycle

Source: MotorbikeWriter.com

Thailand is new motoring powerhouse

Thailand has become one of the powerhouses in the automotive world, manufacturing motorcycle brands as diverse as BMW, Ducati, Harley-Davidson, Triumph and Royal Enfield.

It’s now the largest automotive manufacturer in South East Asia and the 12th in the world, thanks to protective tariffs, corporate tax breaks and a central location wth several ports for export.

Powerhouse

Every dual-cab ute and Honda car, plus small Mazdas, Fords and MG sold into Australia are made in Thailand.

There are also more than 1800 automotive parts manufacturers in Thailand including the premium Swedish Ohlins suspension and BMW batteries for electric cars, scooters and future motorcycles.

Thailand BMW battery factory
BMW’s Thai EV battery factory

Motorcycle manufacture is also growing in leaps and bounds with Royal Enfield the eighth to announce it will open a factory in the country.

In 2015, Thailand made 1.8 motorcycles, with domestic sales of 1.6 million and exports of 350,000 units.

At the moment, the only motorcycles exported to Australia from Thailand are 80% of the Triumph range and some small- and medium-capacity Japanese bikes and scooters.

Harley-Davidson CFO John Olin says their Thai plant came online late last year.

“As we explained when we announced this project in 2017, we intend to utilise it to make more of our products accessible to customers and targeted international market,” he says.

However, Harley-Davidson Australia spokesman Keith Waddell says the company has confirmed to them that “motorcycles for Australia will not be assembled in Thailand”.

That could change in years to come.

Thailand skeptics

Troy Bayliss checks Ducati Scramblers dirt tracker workers
Troy Bayliss tours the Ducati factory in Thailand (Image: Ultimate Motorcycle

When Honda announced it would be importing most of its cars from a new factory just outside Bangkok about a decade ago, there was some skepticism among Australian motoring journalists that they would be accepted by Aussie motorists.

So Honda Australia organised a tour of their factory which I attended.

I was surprised to find a state-of-the-art facility built on a greenfield site with supervisors walking around wearing white gloves and a floor so clean you could eat your dinner off it.

One supervisor told me the quality was strictly controlled, but the humid environment actually cured plastics and rubber better for a longer life than in vehicles made in Japan.

However, another manufacturer told me the humidity destroys some rubber very quickly.

To Aussie drivers, there now seems no problem with Thai-made cars. In fact, our top-four-selling vehicles are all Thai made.

The vehicles are good quality and the Thai-Australian free trade agreement makes them good value.

Likewise, there should be little concern with Thai bikes.

However, some say the recall problems Triumph has suffered in recent years are a result of Thai production.

Rather than a lack of quality production facilities, it’s more likely the rush to get new models on to the market as is the case with most motorcycle manufacturers.

Source: MotorbikeWriter.com