DEARBORN — Nissan has announced that due to a coronavirus outbreak in Malaysia, its sizable facility in Smyrna would be closed for two weeks starting on Monday.
Since the semiconductor shortage, which has hampered vehicle manufacturing globally, began to take hold in the latter part of last year, the stoppage is among the longest at any American auto plant of this scale.
A COVID-19 outbreak at a Malaysian chip manufacturing caused Nissan to run out of chips, the company reported on Tuesday. On August 30, it anticipates resuming manufacturing.
Six Nissan models are produced in the 6 million-square-foot Tennessee factory, which also employs 6,700 people and is home to the company’s best-selling vehicle in the United States, the Rogue small SUV.
According to analysts, the massive Nissan factory’s two-week stoppage is an indication that the semiconductor scarcity could not be ending as soon as many auto executives had planned for late this year.
The few American facilities that have been closed for two consecutive weeks are typically those that produce sedans or other lower-volume, less lucrative vehicles. Automakers have made an effort to save chips for the factories that produce their best-selling vehicles, primarily SUVs and pickup trucks. However, there have also been periodic closures of pickup vehicle manufacturing facilities, including three General Motors factories this week.
Sam Abuelsamid, principal analyst at Guidehouse Research, stated that Smyrna is a vital manufacturing for Nissan and that its closure indicates that there may not be a quick resolution to the semiconductor shortage.
Supply issues could endure even longer than that, according to Abuelsamid, as COVID-19 infections continue to spread throughout the semiconductor supply chain in Asia and other places.
There is a nationwide shortage of new vehicles as a result of the shortfall, manufacturing closures, and high consumer demand in the U.S. As a result, prices have increased and the used car market has been affected by the lack.
According to Phil Amsrud, senior principal analyst for IHS Markit who monitors the chip business, the chip scarcity is beginning to ease, but the coronavirus delta variant is beginning to cause issues at companies in the semiconductor supply chain, which is aggravating the situation.
Large silicon wafers are divided into numerous smaller integrated circuits by chip foundries in Taiwan and other Asian countries. After that, they are transported to Malaysian “back end” producers where they are subsequently sliced into chips for use in vehicle control computers.
However, as demonstrated by the Nissan stoppage, breakouts among workers in those industries and in the shipping industry are once again hurting supplies. Additionally, he added, the chips automakers are purchasing now could not be suitable for future products.
Amsrud also pointed out that poor immunization rates are common in many nations that handle the back-end jobs, such as Malaysia.
I think we’re basically setting up for Delta to have a footing in all of these places, he said. “I believe delta will continue to give us several issues.”
In This Article...
Following a COVID-19 outbreak at a Malaysian chip supplier, the Tennessee plant will be shut down through September 12.
Nissan’s U.S. manufacturing is still being impacted by a COVID-19 outbreak that occurred at a Malaysian microchip supplier plant this month.
Nissan’s Smyrna, Tennessee, facility was already closed due to the Malaysian crisis as of August 30. However, that delay will now last until September 12, which will have an impact on the manufacturing of important models including the Nissan Rogue, Pathfinder, and Infiniti QX60 SUVs.
Additionally, the Versa, Kicks, and Sentra models will not be produced in Nissan’s Aguascalientes, Mexico, facility until September 5.
Nissan is anticipated to lose 157,000 units of North American manufacturing this year, including the recently reported downtime, according to AutoForecast Solutions (AFS).
Nissan announced on August 10 that Smyrna activities would be suspended for two weeks due to the issue at the chip supplier. The provider has not been named by Nissan.
Due to a deficit in microchip allocations, Nissan has seen some manufacturing line interruptions this year, just like other automakers. However, those shortages were primarily brought on by chipmakers with constrained capacity and automakers with hazy 2021 predictions miscalculating demand.
According to AFS estimates, the chip shortfall has caused automakers to scale back their global production plans by 6.9 million vehicles.
Many in the sector continued to believe that the chip problem was progressively abating as the COVID-19 epidemic subsided and supply networks resumed operations.
However, the car sector is facing new issues due to a resurgence of COVID-19 infections, especially the transmission of the virus’ delta form.
Nissan’s Tennessee plant will temporarily stop production.
To balance inventory levels, the Japanese automaker will to halt production at its Smyrna assembly facility for two days this month, according to company executives.
AP: NASHVILLE, Tennessee In order to balance inventory levels, Nissan Motor Corp. intends to halt operations at its Smyrna assembly factory for two days this month.
On March 28 and 31, employees who have vacation or personal days remaining may use them. If not, two days of pay will be deducted from their paychecks.
Nashville-based The Smyrna plant is where Nissan North America Inc. produces the Maxima sedan, the Frontier pickup, the Xterra sport utility vehicle, and the Altima coupe and sedan.
Nissan’s engine factory in Decherd and its other car assembly facility in Canton, Miss., according to Nissan spokesperson Julie Lawless, won’t be impacted by the closure.
Compared to the same month last year, Nissan’s overall U.S. sales were down 2.9 percent in February for trucks and 2.2 percent for automobiles.
The company’s first order of the year is a two-day production halt at Smyrna.
General Motors Corp., which has an assembly plant in Spring Hill, Tennessee, has announced that it will reduce production in the second quarter. However, 29 of GM’s North American truck and sport utility vehicle plants have been forced to shut down entirely or in part due to a strike that has been going on at a GM supplier since Feb. 26 at American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc. These factories produce automobiles using axles from American Axle.
According to trade publication Automotive News, GM has lost over 41,000 units of truck and SUV manufacturing since the American Axle strike started.
The business has reluctant to go into specifics about production or to estimate how much it would be reduced.
“We plan to keep going.” No one is being let go,” stated spokesperson Michael Goss. We’ll assign some workers to special improvement teams and conduct extra training, among other things, but our objective is to keep everyone employed.
Comparing the same period this year to last, full-size pickup sales in the United States were down about 10% through the month of February, according to the industry.
Currently, Nissan pays all of the property taxes.
Nissan’s property taxes on new investments will be reduced by 50% over a 20-year agreement approved by the Rutherford County Industrial Development Board.
- Nissan’s prior tax agreement, which dates to 1982, expired.
- County leaders claim the Nissan agreement will safeguard jobs.
- In 1983, Nissan constructed a facility in Smyrna.
- The facility employs approximately 7,000 people and produces six different vehicle products.
Nissan convinced Rutherford County lawmakers to grant a 20-year, 50% tax cut on upcoming investments at the Smyrna factory on Wednesday morning.
Tim Slattery, a spokesman for Nissan, told the Rutherford County Industrial Development Board, “We’re going to be here for a while.”
The deal was approved by a 5-0 vote of the current IDB members. The factory employs more than 7,000 people and began operations in 1983.
The choice was made when the Rutherford County Commission unanimously voted to support the new IDB agreement, which makes no promises about creating new jobs.
Robert Peay Jr., the head of the commission’s budget committee, said, “This provides us a chance to keep this plant functional. “I believe it to be a good deal for the county, particularly because it will help safeguard jobs in the future.”
Nissan of Smyrna has closed, right?
Due to a coronavirus outbreak in Malaysia and an interruption in the supply of semiconductors, one of the biggest auto manufacturers in North America was forced to temporarily close.
How many people are employed by Nissan in Smyrna, Tennessee?
Around 8,000 people work at the Nissan Smyrna Assembly Plant in Smyrna, Tennessee, which started producing cars in 1983. 640,000 automobiles may be produced there annually, making it the most in North America in 2017.
Will Nissan cease operations?
Nine years after the firm began the Datsun brand’s global relaunch in India, rumors were rampant when the company decided to end the Datsun brand there.
Nissan India has not been shut down, despite rumors to the contrary, according to a senior corporate official who also confirmed that the company is heavily invested in India. Nine years after the firm began the Datsun brand’s global relaunch in India, rumors were rampant when the company decided to end the Datsun brand there.
Srivastava emphasized that the business has a significant investment in India “The first vehicle to be introduced in India under Nissan NEXT, the company’s global transformation plan, is the Magnite, which offers highly aspirational value. With 50,000 production rollouts, it surpassed the milestone of one lakh plus client bookings in March 2022.”
He emphasized that there are presently more than 18,000 pending client bookings for its well-liked small SUV, with a waiting time of 5 to 6 months.
Despite Magnite’s respectable demand, it is well known that the corporation is in danger in India. In India, it has had a miserable almost two-decade-long journey, both in terms of market share and footprint expansion. Nissan India, which only has one production facility in Chennai, now has a market share of less than 1%.
With aggressive efforts to maximize output in the face of obstacles from semiconductor shortages and Covid-19, Srivastava added, “We are servicing the client demand in the local and 15 export markets through our manufacturing unit in Chennai.
When senior Congress leaders asserted that Nissan themselves had ceased operations in the Indian market, the discontinuance of Datsun became a political issue. Mallikarjun Kharge, a former minister of the Union and the opposition leader in the Rajya Sabha, tweeted on Monday that Nissan has joined “Ford, General Motors, Fiat, United Motors, Premier Automobiles, and Harley Davidson” in ceasing operations in India.
“Due to “sleaze of business” and declining revenues, several automobile majors have left India one after another. No one has ever failed the Indian economy and brought shame on India abroad like the BJP, “Added he.
How is the work environment at Nissan?
swiftly paced, difficult, and encouraging The Nissan staff is top-notch. I work with devoted colleagues and leaders who frequently go above and beyond. Every day presents new challenges, but I also have support to accomplish the best job I can.
How long will Nissan be closed?
DEARBORN, MI — Nissan claims that due to a scarcity of computer chips brought on by a coronavirus outbreak in Malaysia, its enormous facility in Smyrna, Tennessee, would be closed for two weeks beginning on Monday.