Kawasaki Factory Not Affected by Japan Quake

One of the largest motorcycle manufacturers in Japan, Kawasaki, announced today that its main production facility, located at Akashi near Kobe, was unaffected by last week’s earthquake.The company also has a plan to legislate for any issues arising from delayed parts, which are usually delivered on a daily basis from companies across Japan.

“Confident that any shortfall in production can be included in extra working during the rest of the month, the company is doing its best to combine the need to continue as a successful business with the understandable humanitarian issues that require urgent attention in the devastated regions of Japan,” a company statement reads.

With production targets met until March 16th, the factory will temporarily halt work on all but one production line on the 17th and 18th, suspending all activities on March the 21st which is a National Holiday in Japan.

In addition, Kawasaki’s Thailand based motorcycle factory remains unaffected by vendor supply issues and continues to manufacture mid-capacity motorcycles at full production levels.

“We hope that there will be no significant production delays and that the supply of motorcycles and spare parts will remain largely unaffected by any planned stoppages,” said Yasushi Kawakami, the Managing Director of Kawasaki Motors Europe who is at the factory this week for a series of scheduled meetings. “Kawasaki staff in Japan, and across the world, would like to extend our deepest sympathies to those who continue to be affected by this terrible event.”

Following the catastrophe, the 2011 Tokyo Motorcycle Show, which was scheduled to begin on March 25, will no longer take place. Also, the Japanese GP round will not be held on April 22-24, but will instead be pushed to October 2.