Mitsubishi Motors Thailand hosts a visit of Thailand’s Prime Minister at its Laem Chabang facility and reports further progress of the Factory Sandbox project To strengthen its collaboration with the Thai government, the company aims to accelerate the automotive industry and promote economic stability

Chonburi, 17 September 2021: General Prayuth Chan-O-Cha, Thailand’s Prime Minister, along with Mr. Suchart Conklin, Minister of Labour, Mr. Ittipol Khunpluem, Minister of Culture of Thailand, Mr. Surachai Chaitrakulthong, Secretary General, Ministry of Labour, Mr. Suthi Sukosol, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Labour, Mr. Pakkaratorn Teainchai, Governor, Chonburi Province and a team of officials visited Mitsubishi Motors Thailand’s manufacturing facility at Laem Chabang Industrial Estate, Chonburi province.

On 1 September 2021, Mitsubishi Motors Thailand signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to join the Factory Sandbox project, an integrated cooperation between the Ministry of Labour and Vibharam Hospital at Mitsubishi Motors Thailand’s Laem Chabang facility, with an emphasis on employee safety while working with the government to mitigate the impact of the coronavirus epidemic in the country.

Mr. Morikazu Chokki, Chairman of the Board of Directors, Mitsubishi Motors (Thailand) Co., Ltd. said, “We are deeply grateful and honored that General Prayuth Chan-O-Cha and a team of officials visited our facility and witnessed the group vaccination of our employees under the Factory Sandbox project. The project is the government measure which maximizes the effectiveness of our current COVID-19 protection to employees, their family members and nearby communities. This is our mission as good corporate citizen to support Thai society to overcome the pandemic crisis. This project allows Mitsubishi Motors Thailand, as one of the biggest automobile exporter in Thailand, to continue our production without any interruptions. Therefore, we can strongly contribute to Thailand’s economic recovery. Mitsubishi Motors Thailand has taken actions ‘strictly’ and ‘continuously’ to prevent the spread of COVID-19 at our facilities, such as Work From Home policy, always wearing masks, social distancing in the workplace, hand washing, online screening, proactive ATK testing within the facility for daily screening, and providing group vaccination for employees.”

For the scope of cooperation under the Factory Sandbox project, the Ministry of Labour will conduct a survey and assessment for Mitsubishi Motors Thailand’s Manufacturing facility at Laem Chabang to ensure compliance with project measures and report the results of the examination to the Communicable Disease Committee of Chonburi Province. Vibharam Hospital will conduct COVID-19 screening tests for all employees within the production center, separate patients for treatment and conduct vaccinations. Mitsubishi Motors Thailand will cooperate through the provision of quarantine facilities for infected or high-risk employees as well as implementing various measures and practices, including screening, treatment, supervision, and control.

The vaccination programme for Mitsubishi Motors Thailand’s employees and suppliers’ employees who operate in the manufacturing facility areas will be implemented both under the agreement of the Factory Sandbox project, which aims to distribute AstraZeneca vaccine to more than 1,900 qualified employees, as well as under company’s management, vaccines will be provided for employees from various sources. With the support from the Factory Sandbox project, the company will be able to achieve its target of vaccinating all employees by the end of 2021.

Mitsubishi Motors Thailand’s manufacturing facility is the largest among Mitsubishi Motors Corporation’s facilities worldwide. It consists of 3 automobile plants and 1 engine plant in Sri Racha District, Chonburi province with a production capacity of 424,000 vehicles per year which creates over 6,200 jobs and more than 400,000 employees work in the entire value chain connected with Mitsubishi Motors Thailand. It is also the first automaker to export Thai-made vehicles and is considered as one of the largest car manufacturers and exporters in Thailand. Today, Mitsubishi Motors Thailand has accumulated an export volume of up to 4.4 million units (from 1988 to 2021) to more than 120 countries worldwide. The facility also utilizes solar energy with its vehicle production process by installing solar panels on the roof of the factory with a capacity of up to 5 megawatts energy producing. At the same time, there’re also the developments of automotive products that help solve environmental problems such as Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV, the first Japanese plug-in hybrid vehicle produced in Thailand.

This year, the company marked another important milestone with the production of the company’s 6-millionth unit in Thailand. This exemplifies Mitsubishi’s role as a key driver of Thailand's automotive industry and contributor to business stability even under the most challenging situations.

From left to right

1. Mr. Mikihisa Kano, Senior Vice President, Production Engineering Unit, Mitsubishi Motors (Thailand) Co., Ltd.
2. Ms. Patcharee Kositwarakitkul, Vice President, Factory Unit, Supply Chain Management Mitsubishi Motors (Thailand) Co., Ltd.
3. Mr. Eiji Ogawa, Executive Vice President, Factory Unit, Mitsubishi Motors (Thailand) Co., Ltd.
4. General Prayuth Chan-O-Cha, Thailand’s Prime Minister
5. Mr. Morikazu Chokki, Chairman of the Board of Directors, Mitsubishi Motors (Thailand) Co., Ltd.
6. Mr. Egathi Rattana-Aree, Executive Vice President, Human Resources & General Administration Unit, Mitsubishi Motors (Thailand) Co., Ltd.
7. Mr. Kitti Leelawatnanun, Senior Vice President, Factory Unit, Mitsubishi Motors (Thailand) Co., Ltd.

About Mitsubishi Motors Thailand (MMTh)

Mitsubishi Motors (Thailand) Co., Ltd., the largest plant in the MMC group and an export hub to more than 120 countries, is one of Thailand’s leading automotive manufacturers committed to produce and sell a range of vehicles that are eco-friendly, high in quality, performance, safety, comfort, technology and customer satisfaction. In 2018, MMTH officially opened Education Academy in Pathum Thani and celebrated a total production of six million units at the beginning of 2021. MMTh’s current range of vehicles includes MITSUBISHI TRITON, MITSUBISHI PAJERO SPORT, MITSUBISHI ATTRAGE, MITSUBISHI MIRAGE, MITSUBISHI XPANDER, MITSUBISHI XPANDER CROSS and MITSUBISHI OUTLANDER PHEV. To ensure the highest quality, MMTh uses its proving ground in Si Racha, Chonburi to assess products from design and prototype stages to pre-production and commercialization. This ensures customers take delivery of vehicles that are second-to-none in all aspects of quality.

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