- Jan 7, 2002
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Detroit automakers have steadily improved factory productivity and efficiency in North America, but still trail Japan's Toyota Motor Corp. and other Asian rivals, according to a closely watched report released Thursday.
Toyota spends the fewest man hours to produce a vehicle -- 27.9 -- while Ford Motor Co. spends the most, at 36.9. The nine-hour difference, though, is down from a 16-hour gap between the two companies in 1998, according to the Harbour Report North America 2005.
Nissan Motor Co. was second behind Toyota at 29.4 hours, and Honda Motor Co. was third at 32 hours. General Motors Corp. was fourth, at 34.3 hours. DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler Group was fifth at 35.8 hours.
Toyota's 5.5 percent productivity increase was the biggest gain made by any automaker. Ford and Chrysler improved productivity by 4.2 percent last year, and GM gained 2.5 percent.
Chrysler's 19 percent improvement in the past three years is the best among all automakers.
Despite the gains, Ford, GM and Chrysler must move faster to modernize plants, reduce rebates and address other challenges to compete with Japanese automakers, the report showed.
"We do know that we've got to move a lot faster because the competition, especially this year with Toyota, is moving very, very quickly," said Guy Briggs, GM's group vice president for manufacturing and labor relations.
The Harbour study measures total labor hours required to build a vehicle, including engine, transmission, stamping and final assembly operations.
GM and Ford made strides despite production cuts last year that idled many workers and left some plants underutilized.
While the gap between the slowest manufacturer and the fastest is narrowing, Japanese automakers are widening their lead in profit per vehicle.
Nissan was the top performer, making $1,603 per vehicle in the first quarter of this year. GM was at the bottom, losing an average of $2,311 for every model it produced in North America. http://www.detnews.com/2005/autosinsider/0506/03/A01-202894.htm
Toyota spends the fewest man hours to produce a vehicle -- 27.9 -- while Ford Motor Co. spends the most, at 36.9. The nine-hour difference, though, is down from a 16-hour gap between the two companies in 1998, according to the Harbour Report North America 2005.
Nissan Motor Co. was second behind Toyota at 29.4 hours, and Honda Motor Co. was third at 32 hours. General Motors Corp. was fourth, at 34.3 hours. DaimlerChrysler AG's Chrysler Group was fifth at 35.8 hours.
Toyota's 5.5 percent productivity increase was the biggest gain made by any automaker. Ford and Chrysler improved productivity by 4.2 percent last year, and GM gained 2.5 percent.
Chrysler's 19 percent improvement in the past three years is the best among all automakers.
Despite the gains, Ford, GM and Chrysler must move faster to modernize plants, reduce rebates and address other challenges to compete with Japanese automakers, the report showed.
"We do know that we've got to move a lot faster because the competition, especially this year with Toyota, is moving very, very quickly," said Guy Briggs, GM's group vice president for manufacturing and labor relations.
The Harbour study measures total labor hours required to build a vehicle, including engine, transmission, stamping and final assembly operations.
GM and Ford made strides despite production cuts last year that idled many workers and left some plants underutilized.
While the gap between the slowest manufacturer and the fastest is narrowing, Japanese automakers are widening their lead in profit per vehicle.
Nissan was the top performer, making $1,603 per vehicle in the first quarter of this year. GM was at the bottom, losing an average of $2,311 for every model it produced in North America. http://www.detnews.com/2005/autosinsider/0506/03/A01-202894.htm
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