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At a major conference for its North American parts suppliers, Honda recognized its strong network of more than 600 Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) and Service Parts suppliers, and honored top-performing operations for their excellence in key areas, including quality, value, efficiency and on-time delivery.

Their operational achievements were even more remarkable in the face of severe parts disruptions last year caused by a devastating earthquake in Japan and major floods in Thailand, said Tom Lake, who leads Honda's North American Purchasing Division.

"Last year we faced two epic natural disasters that created severe supply issues, and our collective response demonstrated that by working together we can overcome any challenge," Lake said. "As a result of our strong teamwork to overcome adversity, we got stronger and today are better prepared to take full advantage of future growth opportunities."

Honda of America Mfg. President Hide Iwata, who also leads Honda's North American manufacturing operations, said suppliers in this region will play a critical role as the company expands operations to meet customer needs in North America - and globally. Honda is investing more than $775 million to innovate existing operations in Ohio and Alabama, has added a second shift to double production at its auto plant in Indiana, and is building an $800 million plant in Mexico with capacity to manufacture 200,000 sub-compact models, including the Honda Fit.

"These moves will make North America the production volume leader for Honda," Iwata said. "It also means that our manufacturing operations here must play a strong role within global Honda to share our production know-how."

This strategy will place the region at the center of Honda's efforts to win new customers in the global market. "In addition to the role we have long played in launching products that are built exclusively in North America, we will now take increasing responsibility in the development of global production models," said Jim Wehrman, Honda of America senior vice president.

2012 OEM Supplier Awards
Honda's 600 Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) suppliers provide parts to 14 Honda manufacturing plants in North America for the production of Honda and Acura automobiles, all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) and other utility products. During the conference, the company honored 53 OEM suppliers for their excellence in one or more of three categories: Quality, Delivery and Value.

Among these recipients, 10 received awards for excellent performance in two of the three categories. Kamco Industries, Inc., West Unity, Ohio, and Fleetwood Metal Inc, Otterville, Ontario, Canada, had the distinction of receiving awards in all three categories, earning them the Triple Award: Excellence in Delivery, Quality and Value.

Honda also recognized nine OEM parts suppliers for their Challenging Spirit, based on their initiatives to overcome extraordinary operational challenges.

In addition to operational performance, Honda annually recognizes suppliers that demonstrate an exceptional commitment to social responsibility with the Honda Corporate Citizenship Award. Recipients of the 2012 Corporate Citizenship Award were Setex Inc., St. Marys, Ohio, and International Automotive Components, Old Fort, N.C. This award is based on leadership in the areas of health and safety, diversity, community involvement, ethics and compliance, and the environment.

Honda's North American OEM parts purchases totaled $16 billion in 2011, and its parts purchases over the past five years in the region have exceeded $85 billion.

2012 Service Parts Awards
Honda's Service Parts suppliers also rose to the challenge by providing customers with top-quality service parts in a timely manner and at competitive prices for the maintenance and repair of Honda and Acura customers' vehicles.

"The past year has seen many of you working together with Honda to cope with a major supply crisis," said Bruce Smith, vice president of American Honda's Technical Service and Parts division. "Together, we survived this perfect storm, but now we must shift our thinking to embrace a new era of competition and of growth in our responsibility to Honda customers."

Fifty-four Service Parts suppliers received awards for top-level performance in 2011. Service Parts suppliers were rated on their performance in quality, cost, and delivery. Distinct from the OEM supplier awards, an overall score is based on the combined performance in all three categories.

Honda also shared the results of the 2011 Carlisle & Company Automotive Parts Manager Survey, which saw Honda or Acura leading the competition in many measures of service parts performance, including parts availability, order processing system, parts delivery, time from order to delivery, and consistency of delivery. In terms of overall satisfaction, Honda led the industry with a score of 97.9 percent. Acura finished first in parts delivery with a score of 97.5 percent and took third place in overall satisfaction with a score of 95.2 percent.

American Honda provides service and accessory parts for nearly 20 million Honda and Acura automobiles in operation in the United States today. The company manages a national network of warehousing and distribution facilities that deliver high-quality, high-value service parts to approximately 1,300 Honda and Acura dealers nationwide. Honda purchased more than $924 million in parts from its Service Parts suppliers in North America last year.

About Honda in North America
Based on Honda's longstanding commitment to "build products close to the customer" Honda currently operates 14 manufacturing facilities in North America, producing a wide range of Honda and Acura automobiles, automobile engines and automatic transmissions, Honda all-terrain vehicles, and Honda power equipment products such as lawn mowers, mini-tillers and general purpose engines, using domestic and globally sourced parts.

Honda in 2012 will mark 30 years of producing automobiles in America, starting with the production of the Accord in Marysville, Ohio, in November 1982. The company has steadily expanded its local production capabilities, and cumulative automobile production in North America surpassed 23 million units in 2011.

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For More Information
Ron Lietzke, (937) 644-6627
ron_lietzke@ham.honda.com

Edward Miller, (313) 202-3150
ed_miller@ahm.honda.com

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