HSHT Hall County Schools Tour of Southeast Toyota Distribution Center

Associates from the Southeast Toyota Distribution center welcomed students and faculty from Hall County high schools for a tour of their facility. Thirty-one students and four Certified Transition Instructors participated in the tour. The high schools participating were Cherokee Bluff, Lanier College and Career Academy, Chestatee, Flowery Branch, North Hall, West Hall, and Johnson. Sid Jessup (HSHT) set up the tour with Senior Administrative Specialist, Amanda Patton (Southeast Toyota).

The tour began at 9:30 a.m. when supervisors Thadius, Charles and Shane met with the students in the conference hall. They spoke to the students for about 20 minutes detailing what the facility does, what it takes to work for the organization and the benefits of working at Southeast Toyota Distributors. The facility receives brand new cars that arrive to them via rail. The cars have less than ten miles on them. The employees then add the options to the cars requested by customers. For example, if a customer wanted running boards on a pickup truck, they would install them. Last year, the company processed over 128,000 automobiles not counting fleet cars. They service 177 dealerships in five states. It is the biggest such facility in the United States.

The students showed their interest by asking very good questions. Many expressed that they could picture themselves working at the facility. The tour covered the railhead, parts department, paint department, and assembly. Students got to observe employees doing their work. They also got to see the on-site gym and the elaborate cafeteria.