Honda looks to restart production at Swindon plant on Monday
Japanese carmaker Honda said that it would try to restart production at its Swindon plant on Monday after a shortage of parts forced it suspend activities.
In a statement, the auto giant said: “Production is not running today or Friday with a view to restarting on Monday.”
Output was halted yesterday after transport delays at the UK’s ports disrupted the carmaker’s supply chains.
Honda operates a “just in time” system at the plant, where car parts arrive as and when they are needed.
Logjams have emerged across the country’s ports as the combination of surging demand post-lockdown and stockpiling before the end of the Brexit transition period have left hauliers and shipping firms unable to cope with the volume of goods entering the country.
A range of retailers, such as Primark, River Island, and DfS, have all warned that they are facing serious delays due to the snarl-ups.
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With the end of the transition period just 21 days away, it is feared that the situation will only get worse if logistics firms also have to navigate a complex new system of customs checks.
Today the head of the British Ports Association told Yahoo Finance that the new checks could cause “major disruption”.
Richard Ballantyne said that the new system risked making some food supply routes “unviable”.
Many firms are looking to make alternative arrangements to get round the disruption, including air lifting in parts and building out stockpiles.
Carmaker Bentley, for example, has hired five cargo jets to fly parts to its UK factories from the EU in the event of a border chaos.
And supermarkets such as Tesco have taken to stockpiling long-lasting goods in preparation for the unknown.