Photo: Toyota
Late on Thursday, a magnitude-6.2 earthquake wreaked havoc in Japan. The country’s meteorological agency has announced that aftershocks are likely in the next week and advised residents of the Kumamoto Prefecture to stay away from buildings that appear to be unstable. Japan’s automotive industry was hit by yesterday’s earthquake as well.
Toyota and Nissan decided to suspend production at two plants, not because the plants in question have sustained damage from the earthquake, but because a major supplier has been affected by the tremor. A die-casting plant and a body party facility, both owned by Aisin Seiki, have been shaken up quite badly.
No workers were harmed in the quake. Considering that both facilities are located in Kumamoto city, near the epicenter of the earthquake, you could say that it’s a miracle no worker was injured. It’s a proper miracle if you consider that authorities have connected nine deaths and more than 700 injured to the great tremor.
Because of this disruption in the supply chain, Toyota decided to suspend both shifts on Friday and Saturday at its Miyata-based Lexus plant. There, the Lexus brand manufactures the HS, ES, CT, NX, and RX. Toyota manufactures the Sai hybrid there, a model that shares its platform and hybrid drivetrain with the Lexus HS.
Nissan, on the other hand, suspended the Saturday shift of its Fukuoka-based plant. That’s the facility where the Rogue (known as the X-Trail outside North America), Murano, Note, Teanna, and Serena are made. Both automakers have yet to decide if their plants will resume operations from April 18 onwards, as reported by Automotive News Europe. It all depends on how fast the supply chain gets back on track.
Although a magnitude-6.2 earthquake is no laughing matter, I'm guessing that the glass should be seen as half full. Remember that the Fukushima disaster of 2011 paralyzed most of the auto industry of Japan.
No workers were harmed in the quake. Considering that both facilities are located in Kumamoto city, near the epicenter of the earthquake, you could say that it’s a miracle no worker was injured. It’s a proper miracle if you consider that authorities have connected nine deaths and more than 700 injured to the great tremor.
Because of this disruption in the supply chain, Toyota decided to suspend both shifts on Friday and Saturday at its Miyata-based Lexus plant. There, the Lexus brand manufactures the HS, ES, CT, NX, and RX. Toyota manufactures the Sai hybrid there, a model that shares its platform and hybrid drivetrain with the Lexus HS.
Nissan, on the other hand, suspended the Saturday shift of its Fukuoka-based plant. That’s the facility where the Rogue (known as the X-Trail outside North America), Murano, Note, Teanna, and Serena are made. Both automakers have yet to decide if their plants will resume operations from April 18 onwards, as reported by Automotive News Europe. It all depends on how fast the supply chain gets back on track.
Although a magnitude-6.2 earthquake is no laughing matter, I'm guessing that the glass should be seen as half full. Remember that the Fukushima disaster of 2011 paralyzed most of the auto industry of Japan.
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