Photo: Ford Canada
It appears that Canada is the latest in a long line of auto-producing nations to feel the profound effects of the latest global microchip shortage. The country, which provides manufacturing facilities for brands worldwide, is often lauded as having some of the highest quality of manufacturing in North America.
It appears that forces largely outside of its control could see everything grind to a halt. The latest report by globalnews.ca details how auto production in Canada has sunk to lows not seen since 1982. Canada supports manufacturing centers for companies like Ford, GM, Honda/Acura, and Toyota, among others. But what Canadian manufacturing gains in production quality, they lose in the number of facilities.
When a profound shortage such as the one impacting the semiconductor market hits Canadian soil, the lack of numerous facilities means production numbers fall even faster and more abruptly than in more substantial national infrastructures like the US, Germany, Japan, or China. Canada's on pace to fall short of the national average for automobiles of 2.2 million vehicles by one million units.
The global chip shortage comes at a time when many Canadian facilities are re-tooling for the upcoming infrastructure change to support a growing electric and hybrid fleet on national roads. With the onslaught of chaos from natural changes in the industry and global resource shortages that couldn’t have been foreseen, Canada’s national vehicle production could sink to lows it hasn’t seen since the Second World War.
Even the most liberal estimates don’t foresee the chip shortage letting up at all until at least late 2022 and likely even later. Canadian autoworkers, just like their international counterparts, will have to spend the meantime not knowing whether they’ll be called into work or not each week.
The global auto manufacturing sector, much like the economy, is much like a long, elaborate line of dominoes with trillions of dollars in GDP playing as the pieces. When one falls, others are more than likely to fall as well. Recent events in the auto sector have been a classic case in point.
When a profound shortage such as the one impacting the semiconductor market hits Canadian soil, the lack of numerous facilities means production numbers fall even faster and more abruptly than in more substantial national infrastructures like the US, Germany, Japan, or China. Canada's on pace to fall short of the national average for automobiles of 2.2 million vehicles by one million units.
The global chip shortage comes at a time when many Canadian facilities are re-tooling for the upcoming infrastructure change to support a growing electric and hybrid fleet on national roads. With the onslaught of chaos from natural changes in the industry and global resource shortages that couldn’t have been foreseen, Canada’s national vehicle production could sink to lows it hasn’t seen since the Second World War.
Even the most liberal estimates don’t foresee the chip shortage letting up at all until at least late 2022 and likely even later. Canadian autoworkers, just like their international counterparts, will have to spend the meantime not knowing whether they’ll be called into work or not each week.
The global auto manufacturing sector, much like the economy, is much like a long, elaborate line of dominoes with trillions of dollars in GDP playing as the pieces. When one falls, others are more than likely to fall as well. Recent events in the auto sector have been a classic case in point.
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