Have you ever wondered what goes on behind the scenes at CALTY Design Research, Inc.? The North American Toyota design studios recently shared a brief film that offers insight into the latest innovations that Toyota is creating and the process that inspires the brand’s greatness.
When CALTY first opened in 1973, it was tiny.
"El Segundo wasn't a campus," remembers Doris Kusumoto in the new What is CALTY? short film. "It was one portion of a modest building in an industrial area. There were about six designers and 25 people total in support."
Despite CALTY's underdog status, by 1978, it was gaining national attention for designing the Toyota Celica Liftback. The studio grew, and today encompasses three campuses in California and Michigan. And Doris Kusumoto, the financial manager and member of the original team, stayed with CALTY all that time.
"I really like the people here," she says brightly.
Toyota was the first major auto manufacturer to establish design operations in the Southern California region, and ever since its establishment in 1973, CALTY Design Research, Inc. has driven innovation for the Toyota brand.
Today, CALTY resides in three locations: San Francisco and Newport Beach, CA, and Ann Arbor, Michigan. CALTY Ann Arbor opened up in 2004, specializing in the design of most of Toyota’s North American cars and trucks. The San Francisco-based Toyota Innovation Hub (TIH) specializes in the technical aspects of Toyota’s vehicles, with many of the team members collaborating with Silicon Valley innovators to implement the latest and greatest technologies into the Toyota model lineup. The Newport Beach office drives innovation by working on concept vehicles, many of which aren’t seen by the public for years, if at all.
So what actually happens at CALTY? It’s a lot of design, research, conceptualizing, modeling, and mock-ups. The process at CALTY Design Research, Inc. is long and filled with modern computer aids, including digital models and 3D printing, and good old-fashioned techniques, like milling clay, fabric sampling, and pen-and-paper concept sketches.
Would you like to experience the design, technology, and performance of a Toyota vehicle firsthand? Visit Frank Fletcher Toyota to see the finished products of years of hard work and innovation in our new Toyota inventory! Take your favorite Toyota car, SUV, or truck for a test drive today!
