BigAls87Z28
12-21-2009, 08:50 PM
http://www.gminsidenews.com/forums/f12/risky-move-gm-run-plants-24hrs-day-87265/#post1928603
KANSAS CITY, Kan.—Starting Jan. 4, General Motors Co. plans to do something unprecedented in the U.S. car industry: It will run its assembly line here around the clock on a permanent basis.
While common in other industries, not even car-efficiency benchmark Toyota Motor Corp. operates its plants routinely with more than two shifts. Car-assembly lines need too much scheduled maintenance and restocking for such intensive production to make sense, many industry experts say.
For a company long bloated with unused capacity, GM's third-shift strategy is a radical—and risky—departure. Unlike other cost-cutting moves made during its trip through bankruptcy court last summer, such as halving its brands to four, the third-shift plan could make GM a model of car-industry efficiency—or end up a failure like its 1980s drive to let robots run its factories.
The move comes as GM is closing other plants around the country. That means the 23-year-old Kansas City factory, which will add more than 900 jobs, as well as two other GM plants scheduled later for a third shift will become boom towns of sorts as other plants go dark.
That's no accident. The Obama administration auto task force that oversaw GM's reorganization last spring was startled to learn that the industry standard for plants to be considered at 100% capacity was two shifts working about 250 days a year. In recommending that the government invest about $50 billion in GM, the task force urged the company to strive toward operating at 120% capacity by traditional standards.
Typically, car makers have added third shifts only as a temporary reaction to market surges. Even then, a more-common tactic is to place two shifts on overtime. "Two shifts gives us the flexibility to perform any necessary maintenance on equipment between shifts," said Mike Goss, a spokesman for Toyota's U.S. manufacturing operations.
A few idle hours between shifts also enables a plant to perform cleaning and restocking. A plant's paint shop alone generally requires about four hours of cleaning a day, said Mr. Harbour, adding that the efficiencies of a third shift can disappear quickly amid slowdowns for such maintenance.
Many auto-parts makers have long operated three shifts, and GM is convinced it can do likewise. Still, it is moving cautiously, starting with what is arguably its top-performing plant.
KANSAS CITY, Kan.—Starting Jan. 4, General Motors Co. plans to do something unprecedented in the U.S. car industry: It will run its assembly line here around the clock on a permanent basis.
While common in other industries, not even car-efficiency benchmark Toyota Motor Corp. operates its plants routinely with more than two shifts. Car-assembly lines need too much scheduled maintenance and restocking for such intensive production to make sense, many industry experts say.
For a company long bloated with unused capacity, GM's third-shift strategy is a radical—and risky—departure. Unlike other cost-cutting moves made during its trip through bankruptcy court last summer, such as halving its brands to four, the third-shift plan could make GM a model of car-industry efficiency—or end up a failure like its 1980s drive to let robots run its factories.
The move comes as GM is closing other plants around the country. That means the 23-year-old Kansas City factory, which will add more than 900 jobs, as well as two other GM plants scheduled later for a third shift will become boom towns of sorts as other plants go dark.
That's no accident. The Obama administration auto task force that oversaw GM's reorganization last spring was startled to learn that the industry standard for plants to be considered at 100% capacity was two shifts working about 250 days a year. In recommending that the government invest about $50 billion in GM, the task force urged the company to strive toward operating at 120% capacity by traditional standards.
Typically, car makers have added third shifts only as a temporary reaction to market surges. Even then, a more-common tactic is to place two shifts on overtime. "Two shifts gives us the flexibility to perform any necessary maintenance on equipment between shifts," said Mike Goss, a spokesman for Toyota's U.S. manufacturing operations.
A few idle hours between shifts also enables a plant to perform cleaning and restocking. A plant's paint shop alone generally requires about four hours of cleaning a day, said Mr. Harbour, adding that the efficiencies of a third shift can disappear quickly amid slowdowns for such maintenance.
Many auto-parts makers have long operated three shifts, and GM is convinced it can do likewise. Still, it is moving cautiously, starting with what is arguably its top-performing plant.