
New vehicles under water
Relocating of mobile machinery to higher grounds became imperative amidst the disruption by heavy flood at the Hi-Tech Industrial Estate in Ayutthaya Province. Sixteen districts in the province have been declared disaster zones and parts of the Wat Chai Watthanaram temple, are submerged under 2 meters of water.
About 60,000 workers are employed at the estate, located about 250 km from Bangkok. Big brand names other than Nissan and Toyota are Cannon Hi-Tech and Hoya Lens which are facing this flood. Thousands of factories supplying parts to companies including Honda Motors and Toyota Motor Corp. are underwater, putting more than 600,000 workers at risk of losing jobs
Nine carmakers with production facilities are affected by the floods, and it is a double shock for Japanese economy, after March 2011 Tsunami. Last year Japanese automakers produced 1.6 million vehicles in Thailand and the group said that this comprises of 90% of the total auto production in Thailand.
Last week on 20th.Oct. 2011, it is told by Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association that Japan automakers are losing 6,000 units of production a day. All of the Japanese automakers operating in Thailand were forced to halt production there as of Thursday.
JAMA said that “The numerous hardships have been tough on Japan’s automakers,” Shiga said. “I hope the carmakers will learn from the challenges and become strong against any kind of risks.” Japanese Govt. is also considering some action to support the affected Japanese Industries from these floods.
Thai Government is also focused on relocation of people and property, since it will be another 4-week before the water is drained from the affected parts.