By Mike Lewis, Times-Mail
mikel@tmnews.com
BEDFORD - The local GM Powertrain plant will shut down for five weeks this summer instead of the normal two weeks as the company strives to reduce its inventories in the face of slumping sales.
Today the company also announced it would temporarily close 13 assembly plants in the United States and Mexico. The closures will begin in May, last through the traditional two-week summer shutdown and end in July. The number of shutdown weeks will vary by factory, but some will be closed for as long as 10 weeks. The shutdowns will begin as early as May 11 at some factories.
The company said it plans to cut production by 190,000 vehicles.
Fred Cox, communications manager for the Indianapolis Stamping Plant and the Bedford Powertrain Plant, said the Bedford facility will be shut down for five weeks.
"We normally take a two-week shutdown in July anyway," Cox said. "The Bedford plant is essentially going to be shut down for three weeks prior to that."
The local shutdown will begin the week of July 22.
According to a press release posted on GM's Web site, there are are three primary reasons for this scheduled downtime:
• Dealer vehicle inventories are at high levels, given the current depressed market.
• The shutdown will allow GM the opportunity to bring production in line with current market demand.
• The downtime actions also consider the possible production implications of the complicated and difficult negotiations with Delphi and its lenders.
Cox said that, because of the recession, "People aren't in the showrooms buying as many vehicles as we'd like."
The Bedford plant shutdown is shorter than assembly plants' time off, he said, because the local plant makes parts needed by all vehicles. The Bedford plant is a foundry, casting pistons and transmission casings.
"Every vehicle needs an engine," Cox said. "Every vehicle needs a transmission. Those are good things for the Bedford facility."
"We're taking aggressive steps to accelerate our inventory initiatives that have worked well since the first of the year. While sales have been performing at or close to our plan estimates, and dealer inventories have been reduced accordingly, we want to more closely align inventories with even more conservative market assumptions," Troy Clarke, GM North America president, said in a prepared statement. "By reducing our inventories even more aggressively we reduce pressure on GM and our dealers, and set ourselves up well for a clean 2010 model year start-up."
Assembly plants that will see additional down weeks are in Arlington, Texas; Bowling Green, Ky.; Detroit-Hamtramck, Mich.; Flint, Mich.; Fort Wayne, Ind.; Lansing, Mich.; Lordstown, Ohio; Pontiac, Mich.; Shreveport, La.; Spring Hill, Tenn.; Wilmington, Del.; Wentzville, Mo.; and Silao, Mexico.
The longest shutdown is 10 weeks at Fort Wayne, which makes the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra pickup trucks.
Job cuts
Previously, GM had announced plans to reduce its salaried work force by 15 percent. Cox confirmed that those jobs were eliminated and that people affected were told Tuesday in Bedford.
"That did take place Tuesday," he said. "It was a tough day. ... It wasn't personal. It's business."
New models
The company said today's actions do not impact operations that are in the process of launching new products, including the all-new Chevrolet Camaro built at Oshawa, Ontario, Canada, and the Buick LaCrosse launching soon at the Fairfax, Kan., assembly plant.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.