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49 AutoData | May 2018 Etios volumes, Toyota still has to keep the standard at 10 ppm, but from 2019 the to- lerancewill possibly fall once more, in half. The suppliers’ response to these de- mands, according to Simomura, is a cause for celebration not only for themselves but for Toyota itself. So much so that the recognition is divided into two slices: the companies that have met the goals and with Excellence are the ones that have passed with Certificate - in the Quality category, even the seven winners have reached the magic index of zero ppm. As far as logistics are concerned, the battle is not less fierce. To enter here is necessary that no late delivery has oc- curred throughout the year and, in order to achieve Excellence, it was necessary to have hung on thewall of the company the Certificate received a year before. In other words: the six companies that achieved the maximum award in that matter have been without delaying any delivery to Toyota for two years. In the area of Best Value Engineering and Value Analysis VE/VA, the winner, Ya- zaki, won the prize for presenting almost two dozen proposals that represented cost reduction, from nationalization of components to modification of raw ma- terials. Simomura notes that 2017 was a rich year in proposals for improvement by sup- pliers: altogether 67% of the ideas presen- ted were approved, a volume that repre- sents more than double achieved in 2016. Another innovation in Toyota’s awards this year was the inclusion of the Environ- ment category, won by Kanjiko for initiati- ves to reduce environmental impact in its production process. The executive of Toyota points out that the results were very representative mainly against the general scenario of last year, in which the manufacturer increa- sed its purchases by 23%. But he makes it clear how the new levels will continue to be demanded: “We are at a high level in Brazil, but in Japan companies are not even rewarded for quality and logistics issues anymore, which are already seen as a simple precondition. They recognize the initiatives related to technological de- velopment and the like, and I believe that we are on the same direction”. The biggest winner of Toyota’s recog- nition this year was Pioneer, for having achieved 100% of the goals in each of the categories of the award. NOT EVEN TOYOTA ESCAPES Despite all commitment and high stan- dards, not even Toyota escapes livingwith suppliers in difficulty, says Celso Simomura , even though they represent an extreme minority. Of the company’s 120 suppliers, four are being monitored more closely because of financial problems, especially cash flow- in one case Toyota had to assist in acquiring raw materials. In one of the most relevant cases, the executive tells, Toyota has helped in a plan to turn two supplier factories into one, with a new layout to improve processes and reduce waste. SIX NEW ONES FOR YARIS Confirming the high standard deman- ded by Toyota, Simomura says even if a company obtains Excellence recognition in the suppliers category does not mean an automatic passport to provide the new product line of the newproduct which will be manufactured in Brazil, Yaris, although it grants “a different assessment”. He says Yaris will have 72 suppliers, six of them are new. The arrival of these new ones has three main reasons: to increase the total volume of production, the adop- tion of new technologies in the vehicle and increase nationalization.