The numbers are mind-boggling. Toyota established its Automobile Department in 1933 and completed its first prototype Model A1 passenger car two years later. Now the company is the seventh largest on the Forbes 500 list, and has more than 285,000 employees working in 170 countries.

Revenues totalled US$27.9 billion in 2005, with 8.1 million vehicles sold, more than half of which were built in Japan. By 2008 the company expects to be producing 9.8 million vehicles, enough to overtake GM as the world's largest automaker.

Statistics mean little without context, however, and by far the best way to learn how Toyota has achieved this success is to visit the heart of its business, one of twelve factories located in the city that bears the company's name.

Originally to outperform its competitors, and now by necessity due to its immense size, Toyota has always embraced continual, incremental change in its operations. Its famous "Toyota Production System" (TPS) has given the world of manufacturing new words and concepts, including kaizen (continuous improvement) and "Just-in-Time". As you traverse the elevated gantry that runs the length of the massive factory you get a bird's eye view of what this jargon means when put into practice.

Following a brief introduction to some of the features of the plant, suddenly you are walking above a hive of activity. This is the delivery area, with car parts provided by Toyota's many suppliers according to the Just-in-Time philosophy. All the nuts, bolts, windowpanes and panels arrive at the factory as and when they are needed, eliminating the need for wasteful storage space and unnecessary inventory.

In the main assembly shop, several things are immediately noticeable. One is the harmony of man and machine - employees and robots work in unison, both endlessly repeating the same movements. Another is the wide range of cars passing along the production line, which weaves its way up, down and around the huge open space. Rather than building cars in batches, Toyota manufactures on the basis of demand. In a remarkable feat of logistics, each car on the line is a different model, specification and color.

One of the most reassuring aspects of the plant tour is witnessing the final safety checks that are conducted before vehicles roll off the production line. Cars are driven at high speed on rollers, brakes are checked and lights and horns tested. This attention to detail, in addition to the many quality checks carried out as cars pass along the line, means there is a minimal chance of a flaw going undetected. Outside the factory exit a couple of models are exhibited, complete with price tags. As newly assembled cars whizz past, cars that just three hours previously were buckets of parts, the marvel of the manufaturing process really hits home.

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