SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS — Toyota Motor Manufacturing North America Inc. announced that the company has awarded Graycor Byrne two general contracts for construction of their new plant in San Antonio, Texas.

Graycor Byrne, a joint venture between Graycor Industrial Constructors Inc. and Thos. S. Byrne Ltd., was awarded a contract for the paint/general stores as well a contract for the utility building. Graycor Industrial Constructors, a North American contractor based in Chicago, and Dallas/Fort Worth-based Thos. S. Byrne Ltd. formed the joint venture in February 2004.

Work for both contracts includes the structural steel packages, all mechanical and electrical work, enclosure (including metal siding and roofing), concrete (including floors and process pits), and all finish trades.

"This brings together the best of all possible partnerships," said Byrne President & CEO John Avila, Jr. "Graycor Industrial is a highly-respected, North American construction firm that has built several outstanding projects for Toyota, so they bring a wealth of highly qualified personnel with Toyota-specific experience. And, Byrne is a Texas-based, Texas-owned firm, with an eight decade legacy building Texas landmarks," he added.

"On a personal level, I’m a native San Antonian, and many years of my professional resume are firmly and proudly rooted in my hometown," Avila noted. "We are naturally very proud to be partnered with such a prestigious automotive facilities builder as Graycor." Most recently, Graycor Industrial completed construction of a 450,000-square-foot paint and assembly plant in Tecate, Mexico, for Toyota, as well as a 315,000-square-foot engine plant in Buffalo, W.Va.

Work on Toyota’s San Antonio projects began earlier this year. Many of the major trade subcontracts have been awarded with over 30 percent of those contracts going to minority-owned businesses.

Graycor Industrial Constructors Inc. is a subsidiary of Graycor, a leading provider of construction, maintenance and facilities services throughout North America. Since its founding in 1921, Graycor has earned a strong reputation in the industry for providing innovative, collaborative solutions to its clients’ unique challenges. The company also is recognized as one of the few U.S. contractors to achieve ISO 9000 registration. More information on Graycor is available at www.graycor.com.

Established in 1923, Thos. S. Byrne Ltd. is the largest Hispanic-owned general contractor and construction manager in Texas, with offices located in San Antonio, Austin, Fort Worth and Dallas. Additional information is available at www.tsbyrne.com.

In 2003, Toyota chose the 2,000-acre site in San Antonio to build approximately 150,000 Tundra full-size trucks annually, beginning in late 2006. The new plant will represent an $800 million investment by Toyota and is expected to bring approximately 2,000 new jobs to Texas. Additionally, 18 automotive suppliers will set up operations on the site of the new plant. Those suppliers are expected to have an investment of over $150 million and employ about 1,500 people. Over the construction period, at peak times about 2,000 people will be working on the site.