TOKYO, JAPAN – January 6, 2012 – (Motor Sports Newswire) – Honda Motor Co., Ltd. announced that Honda’s cumulative worldwide power products production reached the 100 million-unit*1 milestone during 2011.
Honda power products business dates back to 1953, based on the original spirit of Honda to utilize technology to help people, when an engine for agricultural equipment was launched with passion to use Honda’s engine technologies to reduce the manual labor of farmers.
Since then, Honda has been utilizing its core technology, the engine, to gradually expand its power products lineup which now includes tillers, generators, outboard engines, water pumps, lawnmowers, snowblowers and other products. Honda’s power products play an essential role in the lives of people around the world as the power to help people in various occasions.
Working toward the realization of a low-carbon society, Honda has been, especially in recent years, proactive in developing products in the areas of energy conservation and creation. As a result, Honda has been increasing the diversity of its power products lineup which now includes a compact household gas engine cogeneration unit, and a solar power system which adopts CIGS thin-film solar cells*2.
In Japan, Honda power products are produced at Kumamoto Factory and Hosoe Plant at Hamamatsu Factory. In regions outside of Japan, Honda power products production began in 1984 with the production of lawnmowers in the U.S. Since then, Honda has been establishing and increasing the capacity of production plants in Europe and Asia as well. Today, Honda power products are produced at eleven production plants in nine countries and are used regularly by people in more than 150 countries around the world, positioning power products business as one of the key pillars for Honda’s business along with the motorcycle and automobile businesses.
Honda will continue its efforts to provide a wide-range of environmentally-responsible, safe and useful products to fulfill the increasingly diversifying needs of customers across the world.
- *1 Honda’s internal data: Solar cell products are not included in the 100 million units which were determined based on the number of engines produced.
- *2 By using non-silicon thin film made from a compound of copper, indium, gallium and selenium (CIGS), Honda solar cells achieved a major reduction in the environmental footprint with the reduction of energy consumed during the manufacturing process.
(reference) : Major achievements of power products business
| year | Major achievements |
|---|---|
| 1953 | ・Launch of the first Honda power product, the H-Type general-purpose engine |
| 1959 | ・Launch of first Honda tiller, F150 |
| 1963 | ・Exports from Japan begin (first destination: France) |
| 1964 | ・Micromini generator (E40) and outboard engine (GB30) introduced |
| 1965 | ・Launch of first Honda portable generator, E300 |
| 1966 | ・Launch of first Honda water pump, W20/W30 |
| 1969 | ・Cumulative power products production reaches 1 million units |
| 1973 | ・Launch of first Honda rice planting machine |
| 1976 | ・Kumamoto Factory established |
| 1978 | ・Launch of first Honda lawnmower, HR21 ・Cumulative production of generators reaches 1 million units |
| 1979 | ・Asaka Higashi R&D Center established exclusively for power products |
| 1980 | ・Introduction of the minitiller “Komame F200” |
| 1981 | ・Cumulative power products production reaches 5 million units |
| 1983 | ・Power products production plant at Hamamatsu Factory begins production |
| 1984 | ・lawnmower production plant in the U.S. begins production. |
| 1985 | ・Launch of first Honda riding mower, HT3810/ HT3813 ・Cumulative power products production reaches 10 million units |
| 1986 | ・Start-up of power products production in France |
| 1987 | ・Start-up of general-purpose engine and water pump production in Thailand ・Launch of extra-small portable power generator, EX300 |
| 1988 | ・Start-up of lawnmower production in Australia ・Start-up of generator and general-purpose engine production in India ・Launch of small diesel engines |
| 1990 | ・Imports into Japan begin of American-made Honda walk-behind lawnmower |
| 1992 | ・Cumulative power products production reaches 20 million units |
| 1995 | ・Launch of in-wheel type motor ・Start-up of lawnmower engine production in Italy ・Start-up of generator production in China |
| 1996 | ・Establishment of power products sales company in Indonesia |
| 1997 | ・Launch of multi-directional 4-stroke engine, GX22/GX31 ・Cumulative power products production reaches 30 million units |
| 1998 | ・Testing facility for outboard marine engines opens in Shizuoka ・Launch of the next-generation power generators, GENE21 Series |
| 1999 | ・Launch of 4-wheeled electric wheel chair, Monpal ML100 |
| 2000 | ・Cumulative power products production reaches 40 million units |
| 2001 | ・Outboard engine production plant (Hosoe Plant at Hamamatsu Factory) established ・Launch of the world’s largest class 4-stroke outboard engine, BF225/BF200 |
| 2002 | ・Launch of the world’s lightest 4-stroke engine, GX25 ・Cumulative power products production reaches 50 million units |
| 2003 | ・Launch of household compact gas engine cogeneration unit |
| 2004 | ・Cumulative power products production reaches 60 million units |
| 2005 | ・Cumulative power products production reaches 70 million units |
| 2007 | ・Launch of CIGS thin-film solar cell |
| 2008 | ・Cumulative power products production reaches 80 million units |
| 2009 | ・Launch of tiller, Pianta, powered by home-use butane gas canister ・Cumulative power products production reaches 90 million units |
| 2010 | ・Launch of Enepo EU9iGB, a generator powered by home-use butane gas canisters ・Cumulative sales in Japan of the compact household gas engine cogeneration unit reached 100,000 units |
| 2011 | ・Cumulative power products production reaches 100 million units |
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