How have automotive OEMs been affected by the US winter storm?
A devastating and disruptive winter storm has hit parts of the US, resulting in power outages, flight cancellations and several deaths. Automotive Logistics contacted major OEMs to find out how the storm has affected their manufacturing and supply chain operations.
An official state of emergency was declared in 24 US states as a result of Winter Storm Fern
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According to flight tracking platform FlightAware, 11,619
flights into or out of the US were cancelled on January 25, with a further 6,288
cancellations reported on January 26 and 2,690 reported on January 27.
At its peak on January 27, the US saw the highest number of flight
cancellations in a single day since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic in
early 2020.
BNSF Railway, one of the largest freight railroad networks
in North America, issued a statement of January 22 warning customers of disruption
to operations across major corridors as a result of the extreme weather
conditions in some parts of the US.
On the roads, there have been reports of closures and delays on the I-35, I-10, I-40, I-55, I-75, I-85 and I-95 feeder routes across Texas, the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic.
Confirmed impact on OEMs' operations in the US
Honda
All Honda plants in the US, from January 27, are now open
and running production following the suspension of operations at several Honda
plants in Ohio and Indiana on January 25-26, a Honda spokesperson has
confirmed.
According to this spokesperson, the third shift was
cancelled at the following plants on January 25: Marysville Auto Plant (MAP); East
Liberty Auto Plant (ELP); Transmission Plant – Ohio; Anna Engine Plant (AEP);
and Indiana Auto Plant (IAP).
And on January 26, the first shift at MAP and ELP was
cancelled, with a two-hour delay on the second shift. The first shift was also
cancelled at TMP-O and AEP, although the second shift at these facilities was
unaffected. Meanwhile, PMC saw the first shift cancelled as well, while at IAP,
the first, second and third shifts were cancelled.
All Ohio plants began the first shift on January 27 as
scheduled, with the IAP resuming production at 11:00am EST.
GM
“The safety of our employees is our top priority,” a
spokesperson for GM told Automotive Logistics. “We are closely
monitoring the winter storm and any related supply chain disruptions, and we
will adjust our operations as needed to keep people safe and maintain business
continuity.”
Nissan
A Nissan spokesperson shared a very similar statement: “Nissan
continues to monitor the effects of this week’s winter storm across the
Southeast. The safety and wellbeing of our employees remains our top priority.”
They added: “We have adjusted operations at our facilities
as needed based on local weather conditions and road safety, and we expect to
return to normal operations soon.”
Ford
On January 30, a spokesperson for Ford confirmed that production is running as scheduled in the US for the automaker.
Automotive Logistics has contacted more OEMs in the
US and will continue to update this article as more information becomes
available.
