ab-b Hyundai increases U.S. production to meet demand
09-12-2012, 07:56 AM
#1
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Feb 2008
Location: The News Room
Posts: 9,188
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Vehicle: Hyundai
ab-b Hyundai increases U.S. production to meet demand
Filed under: Plants/Manufacturing, Hyundai, Kia, South Korea
Hyundai's U.S. dealers are finding popularity to be bittersweet. While sales are at record highs, supplies are tight. Labor strikes at the company's South Korean plants have cut as many as 10,000 U.S.-bound vehicles.
Though union workers reached an agreement with Hyundai last week, the new contract cuts the two 10-hour work shifts to an eight-hour day shift and a nine-hour night shift. That's about a 15 percent reduction in production hours beginning in March. Union officials say productivity will improve and that no loss of output is expected.
Hyundai's largest South Korean plant currently builds 300 cars an hour, totaling 1.5 million cars a year. Automotive News estimates that a 15-percent reduction at that plant alone would be a loss of 234,000 units a year.
To make sure U.S. demand is fully met, Hyundai's Alabama plant has added a third shift that is expected to churn out an extra 20,000 Sonata and Elantra models by the year's end.
"Hyundai has been running flat out," Automotive News quotes Chris Richter, an auto analyst at CLSA Asia-Pacific in Tokyo. "They don't have spare capacity lying around. It's going to put pressure on them to start adding capacity somewhere. Their investors and dealers are going to be screaming for more product."Hyundai increases U.S. production to meet demand originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 12 Sep 2012 09:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments
View the full article
Hyundai's U.S. dealers are finding popularity to be bittersweet. While sales are at record highs, supplies are tight. Labor strikes at the company's South Korean plants have cut as many as 10,000 U.S.-bound vehicles.
Though union workers reached an agreement with Hyundai last week, the new contract cuts the two 10-hour work shifts to an eight-hour day shift and a nine-hour night shift. That's about a 15 percent reduction in production hours beginning in March. Union officials say productivity will improve and that no loss of output is expected.
Hyundai's largest South Korean plant currently builds 300 cars an hour, totaling 1.5 million cars a year. Automotive News estimates that a 15-percent reduction at that plant alone would be a loss of 234,000 units a year.
To make sure U.S. demand is fully met, Hyundai's Alabama plant has added a third shift that is expected to churn out an extra 20,000 Sonata and Elantra models by the year's end.
"Hyundai has been running flat out," Automotive News quotes Chris Richter, an auto analyst at CLSA Asia-Pacific in Tokyo. "They don't have spare capacity lying around. It's going to put pressure on them to start adding capacity somewhere. Their investors and dealers are going to be screaming for more product."Hyundai increases U.S. production to meet demand originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 12 Sep 2012 09:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | Email this | Comments
View the full article
09-12-2012, 09:24 AM
#2
Administrator
Join Date: Oct 2002
Location: ɯooɹpǝq ɹnoʎ
Posts: 13,943
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Vehicle: ǝdnoɔ sısǝuǝƃ
dang Koreans, unwilling to work American hours 
South Korean economy must be doing well. This strike stems from complaints about 10 hour shifts?! Why not be happy to have a job, extra money from extra hours, and high demand for the product you're producing?
While I was in college taking 15 hours of classes, I was working a minimum of 5-10hr shifts M-F, with busy times being 12-hr shifts... work 3p - 3a with classes 9a-2p. I practically lived out of my Tiburon for that semester and crashed on my in-laws couch (g/f at the time) to catch 4-5 hrs of sleep.
South Korean economy must be doing well. This strike stems from complaints about 10 hour shifts?! Why not be happy to have a job, extra money from extra hours, and high demand for the product you're producing?
While I was in college taking 15 hours of classes, I was working a minimum of 5-10hr shifts M-F, with busy times being 12-hr shifts... work 3p - 3a with classes 9a-2p. I practically lived out of my Tiburon for that semester and crashed on my in-laws couch (g/f at the time) to catch 4-5 hrs of sleep.