Elm Analytics - Automotive Supply Chain Risk Digest #278 - June 3 - 9, 2022

EXPANDING

Gestamp is expanding its plant in Matsusaka, Japan by building a new hot stamping line. Construction will start this month and end in June 2023.

HUMAN CAPITAL

Tesla is reportedly pausing all hiring worldwide with plans to cut 10% of its workforce.

INDUSTRY DIRECTIONS

Toyota has developed a new in-vehicle system called "Cabin Awareness" that aims to stop child and pet deaths in hot cars. If life is detected in the vehicle when the driver is not present, it would begin an increasingly aggressive series of alerts while also starting the HVAC system, rolling down windows and alerting first responders.

This week, Ford showcased a feature of its new F-150 Lightning EV that would allow users to charge dead Teslas directly from the pickup. Ford CEO Jim Farley tweeted "Not trolling. Just helpful".

LABOR DISPUTE

A UAW petition has lead to US regulators requesting that Mexico look into possible labor violations at a Stellantis owned plant in Mexico. The US has requested that Mexico investigate whether workers at the Teksid Hierro de Mexico plant in Frontera are being denied the ability to unionize.

LITIGATION

As part of an ongoing federal lawsuit, Ford, BMW, Honda, Volkswagen and Volvo have filed a motion supporting California's ability to set its own emissions rules. The lawsuit was brought last month by 17 Republican attorneys general following the EPAs decision to reissue the state's waiver.

MERGERS, VENTURES, ACQUISITIONS

The city of St. Thomas in Ontario, Canada has assembled a new 800 acre "mega-site" in order to attract new EV investment in the area.

OPENING

South Korean EV parts supplier Dongshin Motech Ltd. is investing in a new $60M plant to build EV battery casings in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. The 170,000sf plant will create around 300 jobs.

Canadian EV charging company FLO is investing $3M into a new plant in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The plant is expected to create 133 jobs and produce 250,000 EV chargers for the US market by 2028.

PRODUCTION DECREASE

Ford is reportedly planning to cut production at its Focus plant in Saarlouis, Germany after August 29. A decision on the future of the plant as a whole is expected to be announced sometime this month.

RECALLS

Mercedes-Benz is recalling nearly 1M older vehicles due to a possible problem with the brake booster. The recall affects models of the ML, GL, and R-Class produced between 2004-2015.

REGULATION

EU lawmakers voted this week to support a ban on the sale of new gas and diesel cars starting in 2035. Some lawmakers were attempting to weaken the target from a 100% ban to 90%.

NHTSA has expanded its investigation into Tesla's autopilot systems to cover around 830k vehicles from 2014 onward. The vehicles have reportedly been involved in 14 crashes that resulted in 15 injuries and one death.

The U.S. Dept. of Transportation has proposed minimum standards and requirements for EV charging projects funded by the government. Transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg said "Everyone should be able to count on fast charging, fair pricing and easy-to-use payment".

RISK ANALYTICS

New forecasts from Boston Consulting Group anticipate that EVs will account for 59% of new vehicle sales worldwide by 2035. The latest forecasts are a 14% increase from their 2021 estimates.

A new study from UK-based Emissions Analytics suggests that rubber tire-wear particles may pollute 16x more than gasses emitted from tailpipes.