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South Korean automobile manufacturer
Kia
maintains 14 manufacturing facilities in eight countries along with research centres in South Korea, the US, Japan, and Germany.
[1]
Kia has four manufacturing plants in South Korea and additional plants in China, India, Japan, Mexico, Slovakia, the United States and Vietnam.
Design centers
[
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]
Namyang Design Center
[
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]
The Namyang Design Center, located in
Hwaseong
, South Korea, serves as Kia's primary design facility.
[2]
The facility, which is shared with parent company
Hyundai
, is located on over 3.3 million square meters of land and serves as the central hub for engineering work encompassing the entire design process, from pre-design studies, prototyping and extensive track testing, and full-scale
wind tunnel
aerodynamic testing.
[3]
to crash testing.
[4]
Kia and Hyundai employees from around the world receive training at the Namyang Center.
[4]
Kia Design Center America
[
edit
]
The Kia Design Center America in
Irvine, California
, is located on a 22 acres (8.9 ha) corporate campus
[5]
with a $130 million initial investment,
[5]
the
Irvine, California
Kia Design Center was designed by
Skidmore, Owings & Merrill
[5]
and was completed in 2008, featuring 45 workstations and nine offices.
[6]
The studio can model up to eight vehicles at once and includes a computerized milling machine that can quickly create full-size models.
[6]
Work and presentation areas include a 2-D presentation room, "a kind of darkroom in virtual reality where up to three full-size digital images can be projected for evaluation and comparison."
[6]
The 239,000-square-foot (22,200 m
2
) building
[5]
features a hallmark 6,000-square-foot (560 m
2
) entry canopy
[6]
and sits aside a 36,000-square-foot (3,300 m
2
) reflecting pool.
[5]
The parking lot includes an environmentally efficient
bioswale
system to filter water runoff.
[5]
Kia Design Center Europe
[
edit
]
The Kia Design Center Europe was opened in 2007 in
Frankfurt, Germany
. Kia had previously shared a facility with Hyundai in
Russelsheim, Germany
.
[7]
The new headquarters building is located adjacent to Frankfurt's main showground where the city hosts its biennial auto show.
[7]
Kia Design Center China
[
edit
]
The Hyundai-Kia R&D center in China is located in both
Shanghai
and
Yantai
.
[8]
Manufacturing facilities
[
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]
South Korea
[
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]
Autoland Gwangmyeong
[
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]
The Autoland Gwangmyeong (formerly known as Sohari Plant) in Soha-dong,
Gwangmyeong
is Kia's first integrated automobile manufacturing plant,
[9]
established in 1973 on 498,908 square metres (5,370,200 sq ft) of land. The plant is near the country's capital of
Seoul
in
Gyeonggi
province, with ready access to labor, other resources and transportation facilities, as well as the Seoul metropolitan area.
[10]
The factory currently manufactures the
Kia Carnival/Sedona
(and its variant the
Hyundai Entourage
, 2007?2009),
Kia Rio
,
Kia Stonic
,
Kia Stinger
and
Kia K9/Quoris/K900
, with an annual output of 340,000 vehicles.
[11]
The Sohari Plant manufactured Kia's first internal combustion engine,
[9]
followed by the manufacture of its first automobile, the
Kia Brisa
(1974?1982). In 1975, Kia exported its first vehicle, the Brisa pickup, to the Middle Eastern nation of Qatar.
[12]
The South Korean government forced Kia to halt car production in 1981, assessing the Korean auto market as too competitive.
[13]
In 1986, the government allowed the company to resume manufacturing with its agreement to build the
Ford Festiva
for export.
[13]
The Sohari Plant manufactured the
Kia Pride
and its
rebadged
variants the Ford Festiva
[13]
and
Mazda 121
, as well as the subsequent
Kia Avella
and its variant, the
Ford Aspire
.
Autoland Hwasung
[
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]
Located in Woojeong-myeon,
Gyeonggi Province
and established in 1991, the plant covers 3,199,636 square metres (34,440,600 sq ft) of land and manufactures the
Kia Optima/K5
,
Kia Cadenza/K7
,
Kia Forte
/
Cerato
,
Kia Sorento
,
Kia Mohave/Borrego
,
Kia EV6
, and
Kia Niro
.
By July 2001, cumulative production passed 3 million. The facility maintains a proving ground with a high-speed oval, 12 different test tracks extending to a total length of 14 kilometres (8.7 mi) and 32 different road surfaces.
Autoland Gwangju to Hanam factory
[
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]
Located in
Gwangju
on approximately 1,022,244 square metres (11,003,340 sq ft) of land, the facility produces the
Kia Soul
,
Kia Seltos
,
Kia Carens/Rondo
,
Kia Sportage
, and
Kia Bongo/K-Series
, as well as buses and military vehicles.
[14]
Formerly
Asia Motors
used this plant until 1999.
For reference, in addition to the Autoland Gwangju, there is a Hanam factory.
Seosan Plant
[
edit
]
Located in
Seosan
, the facility opened in 2004 as a joint venture with
Donghee
. It manufactures 230,000 units a year and is the producer of the
Kia Picanto/Morning
and
Kia Ray
.
[15]
China
[
edit
]
Yancheng Plant
[
edit
]
In December 2007, Kia Motors Corporation opened its manufacturing facility in
Yancheng
,
Jiangsu
Province, its second plant in China and its second plant in conjunction as a joint venture.
[16]
Yueda Kia
is a joint venture of Kia and China's Jiangsu Yueda. It was originally established as Dongfeng Yueda Kia in 2002, but
Dongfeng Automotive Group
sold its 25% stake to Jiangsu Yueda in 2021.
[17]
[18]
The facility is 3.9 million sq.-ft. (367,794 sq.-m)
[16]
and is located just 2.2 miles (3.5 km) from the joint venture's existing facility.
[16]
At an initial cost of US$800 million, the fully integrated passenger car production facility will have an annual capacity of 300,000 units, boosting DYK's total annual capacity to 430,000 vehicles.
[19]
India
[
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]
Anantapur Plant (KIN)
[
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]
Kia created a greenfield facility in the
Anantapur district
of
Andhra Pradesh
, opened in 2018. The site occupies 536 acres (2.17 km
2
) and has facilities for stamping, welding, painting and assembly with annual production capacity of 300,000 vehicles.
[20]
Its head office is currently in
Amaravathi
which is the new capital of Andhra Pradesh. It will also be home to supplier companies’ facilities. The plant currently manufactures the
Kia Seltos
from mid-2019,
Kia Sonet
from September 2020 and
Kia Carens
for domestic market and exports to emerging markets.
[14]
The plant also manufactures the
Kia Carnival
exclusively for domestic market.
Mexico
[
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]
Monterrey Plant (KMMX)
[
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]
Located in
Pesqueria
, near
Monterrey
,
Nuevo Leon
, and opened in September 2016,
[21]
this US$1 billion plant is capable of producing 300,000 cars annually.
[22]
The facility currently manufactures the third generation
Forte
and the fourth generation
Rio
.
[23]
It also manufactured the fifth generation
Hyundai Accent
for the American continent, which was discontinued in 2022.
[24]
The press factory developed and installed a uniform cushioning device with a high quality stabilization effect by ensuring uniform panel quality. The body shop has achieved 100% welding automation rate with more than 300 robots. In the event of a facility failure, a monitoring system has also been established that allows Korean experts to provide remote support. The paint shop applied an eco-friendly water-soluble method that can paint a total of 15 kinds of colors. The outfitting factory applied a one-kit system using a bridge direct supply method for module parts such as seats and bumpers, and a conveyor.
In 2022, Kia announced an additional $480 million to open at least five new production facilities while $67 million of the existing investment will be used to improve commuting conditions.
Pakistan
[
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]
Lucky Motor Corporation
[
edit
]
Lucky Motor
is a Pakistani automobile assembler and distributor owned by the
Yunus Brothers Group
. It currently assembles the
Kia Picanto
,
Kia Sportage
, Kia Sorento,
Kia Grand Carnival
,
Kia Stonic
, and
Kia Frontier
.
[25]
[26]
[27]
[28]
Slovakia
[
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]
?ilina Plant (KaSK)
[
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]
In April 2007,
[29]
Kia opened its first plant in Europe, at the initial cost of €1b, in
?ilina
,
Slovakia
, about 200 kilometres north-east of
Bratislava
, with initial production concentrating around the
Kia Cee'd
model, designed exclusively for the European market, with production later expanding to the
Kia Venga
and
Kia Sportage
. The capacity of the plant is 300,000 units per year.
[30]
It is one of the few auto factories in the world that is capable of building up to eight different models on the same line, and build ratios can be adjusted to demand.
[31]
In 2019, Kia's Zilina plant built a system to replace all electricity with renewable energy. In 2020, Kia invested 70 million euros to expand the engine production line at Kia's Zilina plant and dispatched 184 technicians on chartered flights. After the expansion of the engine production line, the company will produce 1.6 GDI engines and 1.6 T-GDI engines. The Kia Zilina plant plans to produce small and mid-sized electric vehicles specialized for the European market from 2025.
United States
[
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]
Georgia Plant (KMMG)
[
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]
Kia Manufacturing Georgia (KMMG), Kia's plant in
West Point, Georgia
, is capable of producing 360,000 cars annually
[32]
for the North American and global markets. At an initial cost of $1 billion (US)
[32]
the facility comprises 2.2 million-square-feet
[32]
on more than 2,200 acres (8.9 km
2
) of land
[32]
near
Interstate 85
.
[33]
In addition to four main areas (stamping, welding, paint, and assembly), the facility also includes a transmission shop, module shop, and a two-mile (3 km) test track.
[32]
The assembly area features more than a half mile of height-adjustable conveyors and wood flooring.
Production began with the second generation
Kia Sorento
on November 16, 2009.
[32]
The facility currently manufactures the fourth (2021) generation
Sorento
, the fifth (2021) generation
K5
, the first (2020) generation
Telluride
, and the fifth-generation
Sportage
.
[34]
Kia's Georgia plant recorded cumulative production of 1 million units in 2013 and exceeded 3 million units in September 2019. On December 31, 2021, President Jangsu Shin retired and a new CEO, Stuart Countess, was appointed effective January 2022.
Savannah Plant
[
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]
On May 20, 2022, Kia's parent company
Hyundai
announced plans to construct a new
electric vehicle
plant near
Savannah, Georgia
.
[35]
Uzbekistan
[
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]
ADM-Jizzakh
[
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]
The ADM Jizzakh plant began its work at the end of 2020 with a yearly production capacity of 25,000, it currently produces
Kia Seltos
,
Kia K5
and
Kia K8
.
Vietnam
[
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]
Chu Lai Plant
[
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]
Since 2001,
[36]
Kia manufactured automobiles as part of a joint venture with
Truong Hai Automobile Co.
at a factory located in
Chu Lai
,
Qu?ng Nam Province
, Vietnam.
[37]
The site covers 320 hectares (790 acres), and Truong Hai was the first private company in Vietnam to manufacture automobiles, and the first to achieve an annual output of 5,000 automobiles.
[36]
The facility expanded in 2003 on 38 ha in Tam Hiep Industrial Park with an investment of VND1,900 billion.
[36]
In 2007, Truong Hai Automobile Co. Ltd became Truong Hai Automobile Joint Stock Company (Thaco), with automobiles marketed as Thaco-Kia. The joint venture produces the
Hyundai Solati
and
Hyundai County
in Chu Lai.
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"KIA MOTORS CORPORATION"
. Kia Motors Corporation.
Kia spends 6% of its annual revenues on R&D and also runs research centres in the USA, Japan and Germany.
- ^
"Designer of New Beetle and Audi TT to Spearhead KIA Global Design"
. Autochannel, July 31, 2006.
- ^
"Styling & Design"
. Kia Press.
- ^
a
b
"KMMG Team Members enjoy training in Korea"
. Kia Press, August 21, 2009. Archived from
the original
on September 23, 2010.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
"Kia's Irvine headquarters earns design distinction"
. OC Metro, Kristen Schott, November 18, 2009.
- ^
a
b
c
d
"Kia Design Center America Opens"
. Edmunds.com, InsideLine, Jun 24, 2008.
- ^
a
b
"Kia Erecting European Design Center in Germany"
. Edmunds.com, 07-13-2005.
- ^
"Oleg Son Is the New Head of Kia Design China"
.
Auto Design
. 2017-10-11
. Retrieved
2019-10-03
.
- ^
a
b
"Kia Motors Overview"
. Edmunds.com.
- ^
City official page
- ^
"All New 2006 Kia Rio Makes World Debut at North American International Auto Show in Detroit"
. Autointell.com.
- ^
"Kia Hits 5 Million Exports"
. Carpages.co.uk, 26th March 2005.
- ^
a
b
c
"2d Korean Car Maker To Enter U.S. Market"
. The New York Times, Doron P. Levin, February 17, 1992. February 17, 1992.
- ^
a
b
Padeanu, Adrian (2019-06-20).
"2020 Kia Seltos Debuts As New Global Compact SUV"
.
Motorsport Network
. Retrieved
2019-06-20
.
- ^
"Kia Picanto City Review (2013)"
. Carpages. 2013-02-02
. Retrieved
2014-03-22
.
- ^
a
b
c
"Kia to Launch New China Plant in 2007"
. WardsAuto.com, Vince Courtenay, Nov 15, 2006. Archived from
the original
on 2006-12-01.
- ^
Yu, Cong; Ding, Yi (2021-12-24).
"State-Run Conglomerate Buys Dongfeng Motor's Entire 25% Stake in Kia Joint Venture"
.
Caixin Global
. Retrieved
2024-05-08
.
- ^
Herh, Michael (2021-12-10).
"Kia Corp. to Part Ways with Chinese Joint Venture Partner"
.
Business Korea
. Retrieved
2024-05-08
.
- ^
"Kia opens second Chinese factory"
. Easier cars, 11 December 2007.
- ^
"India Plant"
. Kia Motors India
. Retrieved
18 October
2017
.
- ^
"Kia Officially Opens Mexico Production Facility"
.
- ^
"Automaker Kia plans $1 bn assembly plant in Mexico"
. Mexico News.Net. 2014-08-28
. Retrieved
2017-05-26
.
- ^
"Kia producira en la planta de Pesqueria un modelo de Hyundai"
.
Expansion
. 2016-01-25
. Retrieved
2017-05-26
.
- ^
"Llega el coreano con
sangre
mexicana: Accent de Hyundai"
.
Vanguardia
. 2017-08-11
. Retrieved
2017-08-25
.
- ^
"Kia Motors Pakistan"
.
Kia Lucky Motors
. Retrieved
2019-11-08
.
- ^
Profit (2019-02-01).
"Kia Lucky Motors targeting commercial production by 1st quarter FY19-20"
.
Profit by Pakistan Today
. Retrieved
2019-06-21
.
- ^
"KIA Lucky Motors to set up cars assembly plant"
.
The Nation
. 2017-12-19
. Retrieved
2019-06-21
.
- ^
"Locally made KIA Picanto to be delivered in October 2019"
.
PakWheels Blog
. 2019-04-17
. Retrieved
2019-06-21
.
- ^
"Grand Opening Ceremony for Kia's Slovakia plant"
. Kia Motors. 27 April 2005
. Retrieved
1 February
2014
.
Although the Zilina facility has been manufacturing Kia cee'd cars since December 2006, Kia Motors Corporation and the Slovakian Government agreed that the construction of this all-new facility, which has created more than 10,000 new jobs in the region, is so immensely significant that it should be formally celebrated.
- ^
"Kia's new factory in Slovakia"
. Easier cars, 26 September 2005.
- ^
"Robots run flexible Kia plant in Slovakia"
.
National Post
. 7 July 2012. Archived from
the original
on 29 January 2013.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
"Kia Celebrates Grand Opening of $1 Billion State-of-the-Art Automobile Manufacturing Plant in Georgia"
. Kia Motors Manufacturing Georgia. 26 February 2010. Archived from
the original
on 6 March 2010.
- ^
Couret, Jacques; Mahoney, Ryan (May 18, 2006).
"State and Kia: Georgia plant still a go"
. Retrieved
2008-06-28
.
- ^
"Kia says first cars built in Georgia will be SUVs"
. Retrieved
2008-06-28
.
- ^
"Hyundai electric vehicle factory to be built near Savannah"
. Retrieved
2022-11-13
.
- ^
a
b
c
"Truong Hai Auto: A Powerful Economic Group"
. Vietnam Business Forum. November 12, 2008.
[
permanent dead link
]
- ^
"Kia-branded trucks roll out from central region"
. Vietnam.net. 2004-11-17. Archived from
the original
on 2009-02-03.
External links
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Subsidiaries and divisions
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Current models
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Buses
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Future models
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Discontinued models
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Concepts and
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Others
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