Lack of demand and chips shortage make manufacturers halt plants

By Alzira Rodrigues | 3/207/23 | Translated by Jorge Meditsch

As General Motors do Brasil admitted to São José dos Campos workers when announcing collective vacations from March 27 through April 13, Hyundai also decided to halt production for two weeks to adapt the offer to demand, in a clear sign the consumer is fleeing the stores. In other cases, as Stellantis and Volkswagen, the assembly lines stoppage should be related to the lack of semiconductors.

Collective vacations at Hyundai’s Piracicaba plant begin this Monday, 3/20, and the return will be on April 3. The three shifts of the vehicle lines are suspended, while the engines’ operation will keep normal.

“The action aims to accommodate production volume to March’s need, avert stockpiling and follow the internal market dynamics for the year’s first quarter. The original production volumes programmed are still unchanged”, informed Hyundai in a note released this Monday, 3/20.

GM will interrupt activities in São José dos Campos from March 27 through April 13, when 80% of the company’s workers will be on collective vacations. At the São José dos Campos plant are made the S-10 pickup, the Trailblazer SUV, engines and transmissions.

Also, from next Monday, 3/27, through April 5, Volkswagen will halt production in Taubaté, SP. Last month, the manufacturer stopped production in São Bernardo do Campo and São Carlos, SP, and São José dos Pinhais, PR, due to the semiconductors shortage.

As Volkswagen, Stellantis informs it will reduce production to adjust the volume to components availability. The company will hold collective vacations in the plant of Goiana, PE, stopping one of the three work shifts next Wednesday. 3/22, returning on April 10.