HONDA'S head of European operations Minoru Harada will tomorrow visit the company's South Marston plant to mark its first decade of assembling cars and to thank the 4,300-strong workforce for their commitment and loyalty.

It will be 10 years since the first British-built Honda Accord rolled off the production line.

Coincidentally, last week saw the final Accord come off the line as the company switches to the award-winning Civic range the Civic Type R is even being exported to Japan and the CR-V all-wheel drive leisure vehicle.

Far from resting on its laurels, Honda UK is achieving its biggest year of growth since car production began at the plant.

By the end of September, the year to date production total exceeded 125,000 cars. By the end of the year it will be 185,000 and the plant's capacity is now 250,000 cars a year.

This means 2002 is already a record year, with production comfortably ahead of the previous best total of 114,479.

More importantly, it elevates Honda from eighth to fourth in the UK car production rankings, placing it for the first time ahead of its former partner Rover, as well as Land-Rover, BMW (Mini), and Jaguar.

The past decade has seen many changes for Honda, from the split with Rover in 1994 to the opening of the second Swindon car plant last year.

During this time, Honda's UK plant has built two generations of Civic, two generations of Accord, and since December 2001, two generations of CR-V.

Furthermore, it has built almost all of the petrol engines fitted to the above models, as well as supplying some engines to the Rover Group between 1989 and 1999.

In total, more than 917,000 cars have been built in the 10 years, with the one million landmark likely to be reached in March 2003.

Exports from the plant are also up, with more than 60 per cent of this year's production destined for other markets, including North America and Japan (Honda was the first Japanese brand to 'reverse export' models built in Britain to the Orient).

Ken Keir, Honda UK managing director, said: "What has been achieved here is a terrific testament to the dedication and hard work of every associate at Swindon.

"As a result of the spirit of teamwork at the Swindon operation, the plant has become an integral and important member of Honda's Global Supply Network, supplying cars to North America and Japan as well as many countries throughout Europe.

"It is no longer a production base for European markets but is recognised now as a world class operation.

"I'm sure the company will now build upon this foundation, mindful of its importance in Honda's international operation."

Perhaps the key to Honda's production success lies in its versatility as epitomised by its ability to switch from one model to another on the same assembly line at very short notice.

In a relatively short time, Honda has become very much a part of the fabric of Swindon life. It is the town's largest employer, with a 4,100 workforce, and contributes hugely to the economy.

The two factories at South Marston are a leading example of green planning, not just to other Honda factories in the world, but to other companies in the region.

Virtually unique among manufacturers, Honda funds itself in all its enterprises. Growth, therefore, comes from within and at a pace that can be sustained.

The past decade has been good for the company, and even better for Swindon.