Product Attributes

Shutdowns and production cuts! What is the reason for the chip shortage?

Recently, OFweek Electronic Engineering learned that Japanese automaker Subaru has announced that the company will be making production adjustments due to problems in the chip supply chain.

Subaru was scheduled to take a holiday to shut down production during the Japanese Golden Week holiday on April 28, 2021, and resume work on May 10. Due to problems with the chip supply chain, production operations will be suspended 13 working days earlier, starting on April 10, in line with the decision to reduce production. This means that the original two-week shutdown will be extended to one month.

Subaru’s decision to reduce production will have an impact on the Yajima plant in Gunma, Japan, which is responsible for the Productivity Lion sedan and Forester SUV. Subaru has already decided to cut production by around 48,000 units for the current fiscal year due to a lack of cores, and this decision to reduce production will add another 10,000 units to that figure. In a statement, Subaru noted: “The extent of the impact of the production cut on the company’s performance for the full fiscal year cannot yet be determined. We will make further announcements if necessary.”

The number of automakers that have had to cut production due to chip shortages is currently continuing to grow, hitting almost the entire industry. This shows that the impact of the semiconductor chip shortage on the global automotive market is severe.

According to incomplete statistics, since the second half of 2020, the world has set off a wave of the automotive supply chain “chip shortage”, due to the lack of core shutdown production of car companies have been up to dozens of, and intensified.

Honda – In January this year, Honda Motor said that the chip shortage continued to affect the production of Fido models at the Suzuka plant in Mie Prefecture and that production would be reduced by 4,000 vehicles this month. “affected by the New Crown outbreak, port congestion, chip shortages and the severe cold weather of the past few weeks”.

Audi – On 19 January, Audi, the luxury car label of the Volkswagen Group, was forced to delay production of some of its higher-priced models and, more than 10,000 employees had to take unpaid leave.

GM – On 3 February, General Motors said that a plant in Kansas, a plant in Ontario, Canada, and a plant in San Luis Potosi, Mexico would be temporarily shut down and a plant in South Korea would operate at half capacity due to a global shortage of semiconductors.

Fiat Chrysler – On March 16, Fiat Chrysler announced that most of the company’s plants in Europe will be shut down until March 27 due to a new pneumonia outbreak that has prevented normal plant operations. Fiat Chrysler’s luxury brand Maserati plants will also be shut down for a fortnight at the same time.