May 14, 2024

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Ford's latest supply chain problem: a shortage of blue oval decals

Ford’s latest supply chain problem: a shortage of blue oval decals

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F -3.60%

The Motor Company delayed the delivery of some vehicles because they did not have the blue oval decals that are placed on them, in another example of how Supply Chain Challenges Automakers hit.

The auto company has faced supply restrictions with brand name badges and model-identifying nameplates, according to people familiar with the matter. Both parts are affixed to the vehicle’s exterior and are important identifiers for an automaker’s products. A spokesman for the company confirmed that it had held back some shipments of vehicles due to the lack of badges.

People said the shortage is affecting Ford’s popular F-Series pickup trucks.

Some people said that Ford executives have considered some alternative solutions, such as 3D printing the badge so that the permanent badge can be obtained. But they said they did not feel that the printed alternatives would meet quality standards.

A Ford spokesperson said the company builds and ships trucks with blue oval decals and is modifying those built without the Ford logo and delivering them to dealers. The company declined to comment on the 3D printing proposal.

Ford shares fell 3.6% Friday to $12.31 amid Sell ​​a wider market. The stock is down 41% in 2022.

Ford said Monday it expects to have approximately 40,000 to 45,000 vehicles in stock at the end of the third quarter Cannot be shipped to merchants Because they were waiting for the required parts. The company said many of these vehicles are high-margin trucks and SUVs and that the shortage mainly includes parts other than semiconductors.

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Ford declined to comment on whether difficulties obtaining badges contributed to the shortage.

Ford showed its seventh-generation sports car, the Mustang, at the Detroit Auto Show on Wednesday. The company said the new model will stick with a gas-powered engine, a strategy that contrasts with some of its all-electric competitors. Photo: Rebecca Cook/Reuters

A Michigan-based supplier making badges for Ford in the past had to limit operations in August, after it revealed to Michigan regulators that it had dumped industrial chemicals into a local sewer system, according to city and state officials.

Supplier, Tribar Technologies, Inc. , specializes in vehicle exterior decoration, including making decals and lettering for vehicles. The company’s website shows that it has previously made decals for Ford models, including the 2021 F-150 pickup truck.

Tribar confirmed it is an existing supplier to Ford, and declined to comment further on its customer. The supplier said that its facilities are now operating at full capacity and that the incident does not affect operations. In terms of discharge, Trebar said the city’s filtration system and sewage treatment plant appear to have picked up the chemicals before there was any physical environmental impact on a local river.

Ford declined to comment on whether the Trebar Limited operations are related to the automaker’s name badge shortage.

The global auto industry has been grappling with many disruptions in the supply chain for more than a year, but most of the shortage revolved around the semiconductor shortage.

Ford’s problem with obtaining nameplates and badges shows that even basic parts can be hard to come by, leading to limitations that could have larger repercussions on the company’s ability to meet vehicle orders.

The shortage of computer chips has led car companies to build some vehicles without the necessary semiconductors and then park them until they’re finished. This strategy has left tens of thousands of cars and trucks sitting in the yards of airports and other pens near assembly plants in the South and Midwest.

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He also had to hold shipments due to missing components. Over the summer, GM said it had nearly 100,000 incomplete cars that it couldn’t sell because it lacked computer chips and other parts needed to deliver them to dealers — a delay that affected second-quarter results.

Similarly, Lucid Group, Inc. Emerging in the field of electric cars to supply chain constraints on commodity parts, such as glass and carpet, as one reason. Reduced vehicle production targets for 2022.

In Monday’s release, a preview of third-quarter earnings, Ford said recent shipments are being delayed It will shift some revenue into the fourth quarter, when the vehicles held are expected to be completed and delivered to dealers. In addition, Ford said its quarterly results will be affected by about $1 billion in higher payments to suppliers to account for inflationary effects.

The news on Tuesday contributed to the largest one-day percentage drop in Ford stock in 11 years.

Ford made steady increases in U.S. sales this summer, outpacing the growth of the broader auto market. In August, Ford’s sales in the US rose 27% The company said over the previous month, versus a 5% increase for the broader auto industry.

write to Nora Eckert at [email protected]

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