Photo: Ford Motor Company
Ford has been stockpiling vehicles for some time now, as the American automaker is no stranger to the global chip shortage. According to chief financial officer John Lawler, the Blue Oval still has 60,000 to 70,000 vehicles waiting for semiconductors. Once those parts are fitted, the vehicles will be ready for delivery.
In early July, Ford secured a sufficient supply of microchips to enable finishing and shipping thousands of F-150 pickup trucks to customers. Unfortunately, thousands more await delivery, and the automaker is racking up storage fees. Customers must patiently wait for delivery of their new vehicles, regardless of brand, because of the global chip shortage.
Ford produced 700,000 fewer vehicles in the second quarter of 2021 when compared with the same period of last year, but that did not stop the automaker from turning a nice $561-million profit as The Washington Post notes.
In Europe, some makes have resorted to delivering cars without some technological features or other comfort elements because of the lack of chips to enable all the needed components to operate. Naturally, once a steady supply of chips is secured, those vehicles will get the missing elements at no extra cost to their owners. Unfortunately, the move will require a visit to the dealer to fit the parts, and time is money, so automakers might have to offer complimentary vouchers to owners for their time.
The global chip shortage has also affected deliveries of the PlayStation 5 gaming console, and its Microsoft rival was not spared. In the case of automakers, the issue lies with the nature of modern automotive manufacturing, which follows the just-in-time, just-in-sequence production philosophy.
The said philosophy was developed many decades ago and it has the purpose of preventing automakers from stockpiling parts, and just receiving them when they are needed. The strategy works great when everything is exactly right in the supply chain, but a snag here and an issue there will lead to production disruptions. As you can observe, this is what happens when something goes wrong.
Ford produced 700,000 fewer vehicles in the second quarter of 2021 when compared with the same period of last year, but that did not stop the automaker from turning a nice $561-million profit as The Washington Post notes.
In Europe, some makes have resorted to delivering cars without some technological features or other comfort elements because of the lack of chips to enable all the needed components to operate. Naturally, once a steady supply of chips is secured, those vehicles will get the missing elements at no extra cost to their owners. Unfortunately, the move will require a visit to the dealer to fit the parts, and time is money, so automakers might have to offer complimentary vouchers to owners for their time.
The global chip shortage has also affected deliveries of the PlayStation 5 gaming console, and its Microsoft rival was not spared. In the case of automakers, the issue lies with the nature of modern automotive manufacturing, which follows the just-in-time, just-in-sequence production philosophy.
The said philosophy was developed many decades ago and it has the purpose of preventing automakers from stockpiling parts, and just receiving them when they are needed. The strategy works great when everything is exactly right in the supply chain, but a snag here and an issue there will lead to production disruptions. As you can observe, this is what happens when something goes wrong.
Google News