At its annual supplier conference last Wednesday, Honda recognized 63 North American suppliers for top performances in quality, on-time parts delivery and productivity improvement last year. Honda America Manufacturing president and CEO, Akio Hamada, stressed their importance in a market where prices for raw materials are increasing. A total of 79 awards were given out among a total of 500 suppliers present.

Hamada went on to say Honda will continue to increase production, but added the manufacturer will need innovation, collaboration and a focused execution from its partners. A new plant is planned for Indiana, along with a new engine plant in Canada, with both mainly responsible for increasing spending by $1.5 billion dollars in parts for the Japan-based automaker.

In North America, Honda automobile plants produced a record 1,432,731 vehicles, and topped the million-unit mark for the first time in the U.S. with a total build of 1,015,462 units. Hondas built in North America represented 76 percent of Honda’s global record 2007 sales.