General Motors Corp. is idling some Chevrolet and GMC pick-up truck assembly operations until early August due to the shortage of semiconductors needed to complete the vehicles. Last week, GM decided to idle four plants that assemble mid-sized SUVs for the same reason.
The chip shortage, which has been afflicting manufacturers across multiple industrial sectors since late winter, is a global consequence of rolling production cuts that began during the Covid-19 pandemic in early 2020.
“The global semiconductor shortage remains complex and very fluid, but GM’s global purchasing and supply chain, engineering, and manufacturing teams continue to find creative solutions and make strides working with the supply base to minimize the impact to our highest-demand and capacity-constrained vehicles, including full-size trucks and SUVs for our customers,” according to a GM statement issued to CNBC.
GM will cut one shift at the Flint (Mich.) Assembly plant during the week of July 26. That plant assembles Chevrolet Silverado HD and GMC Sierra HD trucks. Also to be put on idle is the Ft. Wayne (Ind.) Assembly plant, where Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500 trucks are built; as well as the Silao Assembly plant in Mexico where GM assembles Chevy Silverado 1500s, GMC Sierra 1500s, and Cheyenne pick-ups for the Mexican market.
These plants are due to resume regular assembly operations on August 2.
Similarly, four General Motors plants that build midsized SUVs have already begun two-week idlings. Those plants are the Lansing Delta Township (Mich.) Assembly plant – producing the Buick Enclave and Chevrolet Traverse midsize SUVs; Spring Hill (Tenn.) Assembly plant – which builds Cadillac XT5, XT6, and GMC Acadias; and the San Luis Potos (Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain) and Ramos Assembly (Equinox and GMC Blazers) plants, both in Mexico.
