GREENSBURG, Ind. -- Honda Motor Co. officials on Monday dedicated the company's new southern Indiana plant, which has been producing cars for about a month, and gave reporters and officials a peek at the operation.

Honda executives and state officials were on hand for a ceremony at the plant in Greensburg along Interstate 74, about 50 miles southeast of Indianapolis.

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Slideshow: Inside Honda's Greensburg Plant

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Takeo Fukui, Honda's president and CEO, welcomed employees and the city into the global Honda family before he joined with Gov. Mitch Daniels in hailing what the company calls "Civic Pride."

The celebration of growth stands in stark contrast to U.S. automaker woes. The company said its culture of equality allows employees to take ownership in what they do.

"At Honda, we have always understood that challenging times represent opportunity," Fukui said.

Nearly 900 people work at the plant, which sits on 1.6 million square feet. The first 2009 Honda Civic was driven off the assembly line Oct. 9. The company plans to add a second shift next year.

"We had a period of time back in 2007 where we received a little over 30,000 applications," said Shane McCoy, Honda division manager. "We're still hiring from those 30,000 applications."

Television cameras were allowed in the facility for the first time for a glance at stamping, welding, painting and body assembly processes. The cars can be put together in two days, thanks to employees and about 260 robots.

About 150 cars a day are being assembled in Greensburg. The first shift is expected to be at full capacity by spring, pushing the daily output to 400 cars.

The $550 million plant is expected to ultimately produce 200,000 vehicles annually, and have about 2,000 workers at full capacity.

Daniels said he hopes the state takes a lesson from Honda "to make sure that what is happening here in Greensburg happens again and again and again until every Hoosier who needs one has a great job."

While the plant currently makes only Civics, it could be adapted to make other vehicles, Honda officials said.