Chip shortage forces Ford to advance plant shut down AUDI DELAYS OUTPUT, IDLES 10,000 STAFF
New Delhi, Jan. 18: The global shortage of semiconductors will impact production of US auto major Ford's plants in India in the coming months, even as the company advances a scheduled week-long shutdown to this week at its Chennai factory, according to a company official.
Ford India, which has two factories at Chennai in Tamil Nadu and Sanand in Gujarat, expects the issue, which is affecting the entire automotive sector, to continue for at least through the first half of 2021.
"The global semiconductor shortage will impact vehicle production at Ford's Chennai and Sanand plant in the coming months," a Ford India spokesperson said in a statement.
The spokesperson further said, "In Chennai, we have pulled ahead a down week to this week due to a supplier part shortage connected to the global semiconductor shortage."
The company is working closely with suppliers to address production constraints tied to the global semiconductor shortage and working to prioritise key vehicle lines for production, making the most of its semiconductor allocation.
"This issue is affecting the entire automotive sector and expected to continue for at least the first half of 2021," the spokesperson added.
Ford India exports a significant portion of vehicles produced from its two plants. In December 2020 its production was down 42.96
A global semiconductor shortage is forcing Audi to delay the production of some high-end cars and furlough workers, its chief executive officer told the Financial Times.
The Volkswagen AG brand has put more than 10,000 workers on furlough as production slowed, but overall output for 2021 shouldn't be affected because the company expects to make up for lost time in the second half, Markus Duesmann said in the interview.
VW, the world's biggest carmaker, had said last month that it's bracing for a major production
per cent at 6,943 units.
The company's domestic sales were at 1,662 units, down 45.06 per cent from the year-ago month, whereas its exports were at 6,992 units, a decline of 53.83 per cent from December 2019. disruption in first-quarter manufacturing around the globe because of the bottleneck. Other carmakers, including Daimler AG, Nissan Motor Co, Honda Motor Co, Ford Motor Co and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV, have also said they face impact from the chip shortage.
In the FT interview, Duesmann said Audi will "do everything we can to keep it below 10,000 [fewer models produced] for the first quarter." The supply challenge came as Audi saw unexpected rise in demand for cars, largely due to a rebound in China, he said.
Last month, due to the shortage of semiconductor supplied by Bosch Ltd, Mahindra & Mahindra had also stated it was expecting reduction in production and sales volumes.