To make certain, the affect of Yellow’s chapter on the auto {industry} is unsure. It could possibly be fairly restricted, stated Dan Hearsch, managing director at AlixPartners.
“I suspect that there are some blips that are specific to models or maybe something to do with a particular carrier,” he stated, referring to broader transportation issues. “But otherwise, we’re not hearing much disruption on things getting moved around.”
Still, suppliers have been rattled by heightened uncertainty in recent times, Harbour stated. Shortages of truck drivers and rail vehicles and backups at ports have all compelled elements makers and power and die firms to re-examine their provide chains, she stated.
“In some regards, you think logistics is just sort of a given, that you’d be able to find someone to move something,” she stated. “That should be easy, but it’s not so much the case.”
Premium freight turned a “massive problem” for suppliers and automakers throughout the early elements of the pandemic, particularly as provide disruptions such because the microchip scarcity made manufacturing schedules much less dependable, Robinet stated.
“Those costs have come down, but that’s something suppliers have had to deal with,” he stated.
How a lot of a dent logistics points have made to any given provider’s backside line relies upon largely on its bodily footprint.
“For some, logistics are a small portion of their total costs, but for others whose components are larger or they have subsystems coming from Mexico or other lower-cost locations, logistics could be a higher cost,” Robinet stated.
Those prices could possibly be a think about suppliers re-examining their manufacturing footprints and their provide chains, Harbour stated.
“This is going to drive a lot of discussion about where you’re located as a supplier in relation to an assembly plant,” she stated. “If I’m across the street, that’s different than if I’m 100 miles away or 1,000 miles away.”
Source: www.autonews.com