DETROIT – Ford Motor will halt or cut production at eight North American plants for varying periods of time through June due to an ongoing shortage of semiconductor chips impacting the auto industry.
Affected vehicles range from the Ford Mustang and Escape crossover to the highly profitable F-150 pickup and Bronco Sport SUV, the company confirmed following an internal memo of the plans that was obtained by CNBC.
“Our teams continue making the most of our available semiconductor allocation and will continue finding unique solutions to provide as many high-quality vehicles as possible to our dealers and customers,” Ford said in an emailed statement.
The shutdown announcements come a day after President Joe Biden visited a Ford plant in Dearborn, Michigan, where he voiced support for more domestic chip production so something like the current shortage doesn’t happen again.
Biden visited a new plant that will produce Ford’s upcoming electric F-150 beginning next year. It’s connected to Ford’s Dearborn Truck plant, which is one of two facilities that produce the full-size F-150 pickup.
The impacted plants are as follows:
- Chicago Assembly Plant in illinois will be down the week of May 31 and will operate on a reduced schedule the week of June 7.
- Flat Rock Assembly Plant in Michigan will be down the weeks of May 31 and June 7.
- Dearborn Truck Plant in Michigan and Kansas City Assembly Plant in Missouri– truck line – will be down the weeks of May 31 and June 7 and will operate on a reduced schedule the week of June 14.
- Hermosillo Assembly Plant in Mexico will be down the weeks of June 21 and June 28
- Louisville Assembly Plant in Kentucky will be down starting the week of May 31 through mid-July, which includes an already-scheduled summer shutdown period.
- Oakville Assembly Complex in Canada will be down the weeks of May 31 through June 28.
- Ohio Assembly Plant will produce only Super Duty Chassis cabs and Medium Duty trucks the weeks of May 31, June 7 and June 14.
The cuts come weeks after Ford CEO Jim Farley warned investors that the company expected to lose about 50% of its planned second-quarter production, up from 17% in the first quarter.
Ford expects problems from the chip shortage to reduce its earnings by about $2.5 billion in 2021, the high end of its previous guidance for the year.
Source: Business - cnbc.com
