QUALITY IS KEY
It is both a tad sad and somewhat satisfying to sample a small slice of Thailand’s automotive manufacturing industry. In this case, Volvo Group’s highly efficient Thai-Swedish Assembly (TSA) facility in the province of Samutprakarn, little more than an hour’s drive from central Bangkok.
Sad, because it is a sharp reminder of the fact that apart from the enduring exceptions of a couple of high-class truck production facilities, namely Volvo Group Australia’s Wacol (Qld) plant and Paccar Australia’s Bayswater (Vic) facility, the Australian automotive manufacturing industry is all but buried.
Holden, Ford, Toyota, Mitsubishi. All gone, while on the truck front it’s hard to believe a bountiful manufacturing future awaits a struggling Iveco at its historic,
