In an interview yesterday, he talked about changes he's seen in his nearly 40 years in the auto manufacturing industry, plans for the Kentucky plant and Toyota's commitment to the state. For one, the competition has gotten more fierce and more difficult. It's become a global economy, so the world is shrinking. Also, the use of technology is increasing and has become a strategic issue in this country. And I think a third thing would be the lead time to market, the ability to bring a vehicle to market in the shortest time, has gotten some urgency because of the cost involved with having inventory.
Computers now are the mainstay of the car, it's how the car operates, how ignitions are controlled.
It's amazing what's inside a car today from a computer technology point of view. It's the same on the shop floor. Our equipment is becoming smaller, more multifunctional, more flexible so that there's more flexible automation that can adapt to different models and different styles of vehicles without a lot of investment increases. Mid-sized SUVs are kind of a hot direction now. Five years ago it was pickup trucks and the vans Chrysler had an advantage on because they were making that van.