Slow sales have triggered industry-wide belt tightening, and Kawasaki is the latest to announce revised production logistics. The manufacturer plans on moving their medium and heavyweight motorcycle plants from Japan to Thailand, and Honda is mulling over a similar shift for their middleweight bikes.
While Johnny Pag Motorcycles raised an eyebrow or two in our forum for being designed in America and built in China, I haven't heard many rumblings about the fact that the 2010 Honda Elite scooter happens to be manufactured at the Wuyang-Honda Motor Co., Inc. plant in China. What do you think: is it a good idea for bike builders to move production to emerging Asian markets, or should they power through these financially trying times by sticking with the familiar?
Source: Bloomberg
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Photo © Kawasaki
I don’t think it makes a lot of difference whether foreign brand motorcycles are assembled in Thailand or Japan. Although Japan has a reputation for high quality manufacturing, there are great products coming out of Thailand, too.
Photography is a hobby of mine, and I use Nikon brand cameras and lenses. As you may know, Nikon is one of the camera brands with a reputation for quality, both in manufacturing and design.
Almost all of my Nikon equipment of recent manufacture is marked, “Made in Thailand”. Nikon does seem to still do most of its design, testing and prototyping in Japan, but Nikon has moved much of its manufacturing to Thailand.
If Thailand’s manufacturing capabilities are good enough to meet Nikon’s exacting standards, they should be good enough for Honda and Kawasaki, too.
Some BMW engines are now made in China, under the watchful eye of German technicians. Japan used to be synonymous with junk, but they got better and better so that now if you want a good car, bike, or electronics, get a Japanese one. China and Korea will go the same way, as the East and West combine cheap labor with good technical expertise. Eventually the playing field will level out again and the next cheap labor market will be exploited, at the expense of the local labor market.
I don’t think this is so much an issue of quality as it is that countries like Thailand and China tend to bring to mind “sweatshop” images, at least to me. I don’t know if Thailand has the same extremely low wages, overworked employees and bad working conditions, does anyone know if Thailand would be that way? That’s what concerns me about this so correct me if i’m wrong.