Honda Manufacturing of Alabama is getting a new president April 1.
Tsutomu "Morty" Morimoto, currently serving as President of Honda of Canada Mfg., has been named HMA President at the Lincoln plant, effective April 1.
Jeff Tomko
He replaces Jeff Tomko, who will become senior vice president and regional division manager of the North America New Model Engineering Division. Its offices are located at Honda of America Mfg. in Marysville, Ohio.
"Tsutomu Morimoto has served in a valuable role in Honda operations in North America," Tomko said in a statement. "Morimoto's extensive knowledge of manufacturing, along with overall business operations, makes him a perfect fit to lead HMA into the future."
Morimoto joined Honda in 1985 and has served in a number of leadership positions throughout Honda operations in North America and Japan.
Tomko's tenure at the Lincoln plant was momentous. He was named president of HMA in 2014 after more than 20 years with the company. Since then, the plant has seen more than $170 million in investments, completed full model changes of the Acura MDX luxury sport utility vehicle, the Pilot sport utility vehicle, the Odyssey minivan and re-introduced an all-new Ridgeline pickup to the marketplace.
In 2014, 2016, 2017 and 2018, one of the HMA-built vehicles was named as a finalist for North American Truck or Utility of the Year, with the Ridgeline taking the top honor at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit in January 2017.
"Jeff has been a strong leader in the areas of associate safety, improved production efficiency and vehicle quality during his tenure at HMA," Mike Oatridge, vice president at HMA, said. "We look forward to his leadership in his new role in Honda's North American engineering operations."
The company also announced other moves.
Jon Minto, currently senior vice president at HNA Production Planning, has been named HMA Senior Vice President. Minto has held several positions including President of Honda Engineering North America, and as a member of the board of directors and senior vice president of Honda North America.
Also, Noboru Takahashi, currently HMA Senior Vice President, has been assigned to Honda Lock Mfg. Co. in Japan.