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-   -   Chennai Rains: Automakers forced to shut down production. Face 180 cr loss (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/indian-car-scene/170367-chennai-rains-automakers-forced-shut-down-production-face-180-cr-loss.html)

Chennai is a major Manufacturing hub for several of the Auto Giants. The torrential rains that have hit the City in the last week have impacted manufacturing in several of the plants. It has also hit dispatches due to the resultant flooding.

As per a report in ETAuto, production was halted on both Monday and Tuesday at the plants of Ford, Renault Nissan, Yamaha, Royal Enfield and Diamler. Hyundai's production was not impacted but dispatches have been impacted.

Apart from the loss due to the production halt, this has also resulted in a few hundred crore loss at the vendors end.

Due to the shutdown, approximately 1200 Ford cars, 1500 Enfield bikes and 1800 vehicles at the Nissan-Renault Plant could not produced. There is expected to be an slight increase in waiting periods due to this. Waiting periods of Elite i20 and Creta are expected to increase by 7-10 days. Although not specifically called out, wait times for the Ford Cars and Renault Kwid can also increase.


Source: ETAuto

I hope vehicles at company yards were not flooded and were safe. This is alarming when thought over.

Even if that were to be the case these would be scrapped and covered under insurance that the companies carry.

I'm not sure if this is the right thread to share this information but the conditions here were downright scary to say the least. Most of the southern suburbs were under water and this 3-day spell highlighted the appalling infrastructure and non-existent planning in our metro cities. I personally saw small cars (the likes of 800 & Alto) floating in water! It was that bad.

What's surprising though is Hyundai managing to run their production lines without hiccups. Even if their plant was unaffected, there should have been so many suppliers around who deliver parts 'just in time'. That all of them managed to do so is remarkable.

The vendors also should be sharing the same space / compound I believe. In such cases, there will be no interruption if the compound is not flooded.

They would have planned and designed their plant to meet such contingencies. Over in Shollingur - I understand Wipro is flooded but HCL buildings next door are okay. Access to the building will be a different issue

Actually, the flooding in other cities is much worse and on a much more frequent basis than in Chennai, which has these problems typically once every 10 years. Chennai has much less rain than other metros, it usually takes some kind of oceanic cyclone for the city to see heavy rain.

That said, there is no real reason why Chennai should be flooded.

OMR and areas near there should really have better drainage, but some amount of flooding in extreme circumstances can be understood, given that they are right by the sea.

However, some of the other 'suburbs' are basically built by encroaching on what is essentially lake territory, and hence not surprising that when it rains heavily, the areas get flooded. Blame the illegal land developer and politician nexus for that.

Thanks to two government over the last 10 years which allowed encroachment of lakes and ponds. Luckily few lakes survived because of a daily newspaper which continues to take a lot of effort in saving lakes and ponds.

For example the buildings in OMR and the new ones near the toll (Shol/medavakkam) are built in marshlands. It would have been better if the govt didnt allow and protected this space.

Similarly the flooded areas of Tambaram are mainly because of all inlets to lakes being closed for apartments and encroachments. There is no way for water to flow when it rains.

If the govt does not take action post this rain and clean up the mess and create that space for water to flow into, the problem will only continue to exist.

Many local ponds were closed. These ponds were great rain water harvestmen spots. Time to take over some of these encroached lands and rebuild some infrastructure to retain water when it rains.

Rain water harvesting is the only good thing these politicians did and our well is brimming with water after the rains. We can fetch with bare hands by the way.

My worry isn't so much at the manufacturer end as it is at the dealer end. The former follow the rule book to the T, the latter is always looking to make a quick buck.

Caveat Emptor, Chennai buyers!

From an earlier thread:

Great point GTO :thumbs up. I think all buyers who have booked and/or are expecting delivery in the near future should visit the yards asap and see how the dealer yards have handled the rains. Since these are typically open grounds, even small rains can mess them up.

Water enters Ford Plant in Chennai due to continuous rain.:mad:

For the 2nd time in a fortnight, Chennai's famed Auto Cluster has stopped production due to the heavy rains lashing the city.

Auto majors Hyundai, Ford and Renault have temporarily suspended operations at their plants in Chennai due to floods. Others are also in a similar situation.

Source: ETAuto

It is not just car production that has been hit. Even spares distribution from factories has been affected, leading to a shortage of spare parts at A.S.S. all over the country.

I had a first hand experience of this, when a Ford dealer cut a very sorry figure when he had to tell me that he did not have bulbs in stock :Frustrati

There will be a vehicle production hit all over the country as the forge which makes CV joints forgings for front and rear half axles lies in Chennai. This is a critical part for all cars as of today and if the inventory has not been maintained, it will see a hit. Last time the die of this forge broke and every single manufacturer was shaken up from top to bottom.

Will this have any impact on the quality of cars delivered? Renault-Nissan Duster is famous for corrosion issues and with continuous rains now for the third week and vehicles parked in open (Ford is shown in your pic, others will also be in same condition) may have issues pertaining to water ingress and corrosion.

Also, as part of year end shut down, plants may again go for annual planned maintenance (which my not be possible during this unplanned shutdown) may have impact on scheduled deliveries for the booked cars; Ford may be the case in point while Hyundai & Renault may have to reschedule overseas deliveries.

Not good for otherwise reviving automobile market after such a long recession. :Frustrati