Honda pauses UK car production amid global supply issues
Honda has confirmed that it is halting UK car production for two days, citing global supply issues.
The Japanese firm’s Swindon factory had reopened on Monday after Christmas, but today it told employees that production would be halted on Tuesday and Wednesday.
In a statement, Honda UK said it “has confirmed to employees that some production activities will not run Tuesday 5 and Wednesday 6 January due to global supply issues delays.
“The situation is currently being monitored with a view to restart production on Thursday 7 January.”
Honda also suspended production for almost a week in early December after congestion at British ports was caused by Brexit stockpiling, Covid-19 delays and the Christmas rush.
Major car factories operate on a ‘just-in-time’ manufacturing principle, which sees parts turn up just before they need to be fitted. However, there have been concerns within the industry that this could be affected by post-Brexit port delays, forcing companies to carry more parts stock.
Honda’s Swindon factory built almost 110,000 Civics in 2019 but has been scheduled to close later this year.
