GM adjusts output due to chip shortage

General Motors said on the 3rd that it was restarting one U.
S.
assembly plant and another in Mexico, but told employees that additional downtime would be required at other plants due to an ongoing global shortage of semiconductors
.

Assembly plants in Spring Hill, Tennessee, and Ramos, Mexico, will resume normal production on August 9, both of which have been shut down since July 19
.

Assembly plants in Flint, Michigan; Silao, Mexico, and Ft Wayne, Indiana, will all shut down the week of Aug.
9, and all three plants are expected to resume production Aug.
16
.

Flint makes the Chevrolet Silverado HD and GMC Sierra HD trucks, and Ft Wayne makes the Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500 models
.
Silao produces the Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and Cheyenne for Mexico, as well as the GMC Sierra 1500
.

The plant in Lansing Delta Township, Michigan — which has been idle since July 19 and was due to resume production the week of Aug.
9 — will add another week to the shutdown
.
The Lansing Delta Township plant produces the Chevrolet Traverse and Buick Enclave
.

Assembly plants in San Luis Potosi, Mexico, and CAMI, Canada will have additional downtime for the two weeks of August 23 and August 30
.

The two factories, which have been suspended since July 19, were scheduled to resume production on August 23
.
San Luis Potosi built the Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain
.
CAMI produces the Chevrolet Equinox
.

The global microchip problem

As the economy begins to recover from the coronavirus-induced lockdown, demand has surged and there is a global shortage of microprocessors used to control engines, anti-lock brakes, power steering, fuel monitoring systems and the heating and air conditioning of modern vehicles
.

U.
S.
automaker Ford Chief Executive Jim Farley said on a second-quarter earnings call last week that he expected chip supply to improve, but warned that the issue remained a concern
.

"We saw signs of improvement in chip production in the third quarter, but the situation remains fluid," Farley said
.