AutoBeta(AutoBeta.net)02/11 Report--

Under the continuous influence of the pneumonia epidemic infected by novel coronavirus, the upstream and downstream of the automobile industry are almost in a state of "paralysis". Auto parts suppliers in many places strictly resume production in accordance with the instructions of the local government, but because the supply of spare parts is slow, it is difficult for the automobile manufacturing industry with the characteristics of long industrial chain to resume work and have to be shut down for a long time. To this end, Beijing Mercedes-Benz, as one of the representatives of domestic luxury car manufacturers, decided to send a letter of request to the local government of Tianjin to approve the normal resumption of work of 19 suppliers of Beijing Mercedes-Benz.

Beijing Mercedes-Benz Automobile Co., Ltd. said in a document released on February 6, "ranking suppliers, the company has only one day of safety inventory, and if it stops production for more than one day, it will cause Beijing Mercedes-Benz to stop production. If Beijing Mercedes-Benz cannot resume work on February 10, the economic loss will exceed 400 million yuan per day, which will also bring huge losses to the economic development of Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei.

The document also revealed that Beijing Mercedes-Benz has 19 parts suppliers in Wuqing District of Tianjin. Beijing Mercedes-Benz issued a request to the local government to approve the suppliers to resume work normally, together with a list of 19 suppliers.

Beijing Mercedes-Benz said, "in view of this, Beijing Mercedes-Benz implored the people's Government of Wuqing District of Tianjin to give the 19 suppliers the following permits: 1. Allow Beijing Mercedes-Benz suppliers to ship finished product inventory to Beijing Mercedes-Benz on February 8; 2. Approve suppliers to resume work normally on February 10."

During the epidemic prevention and control period, most enterprises are in the stage of suspending production in accordance with the instructions of the local government, and the automobile industry and parts manufacturers are no exception. This is a move by the government to further strengthen the prevention and control of the epidemic and reduce the accumulation of personnel and the spread of the virus during the epidemic. Therefore, all provinces and cities have made clear regulations on the time for enterprises to return to work. Beijing Mercedes-Benz is eager to resume production and has asked the supplier's local government for normal resumption, indicating that Beijing Mercedes-Benz hopes to reduce corporate losses. In the document, Beijing Mercedes-Benz said the shutdown caused economic losses of more than 400 million yuan a day.

To this end, on February 10, the media contacted Beijing Mercedes-Benz and other relevant parties to learn about the situation.

Beijing Mercedes-Benz replied on the 10th that the factory has begun to resume production in a single shift, but did not disclose whether the 19 suppliers in Tianjin have fully resumed work. And Daimler confirmed today that "we started production at the Beijing plant yesterday (February 10) and will step up production and retail efforts".

The person in charge of the Automobile Industry Park in Wuqing District of Tianjin revealed that Beijing Mercedes-Benz did type a document to the government of Wuqing District of Tianjin to request to return to work. "I heard that BeiBen is negotiating with Tianjin, and the enterprise personnel of the (park supplier) are also studying this matter." The official also said that at present, the entire park is in a state of shutdown. "it was said on the 10th in the past, but now the Tianjin epidemic Prevention and Control headquarters does not have a clear timetable." As to when work can be resumed, it is only said that further notice will be given according to the situation of the epidemic. "

According to the "epidemic prevention and control measures for industrial enterprises after resuming production" issued by Tianjin, the requirements for enterprises to resume work are clearly put forward. Including establishing a sound epidemic prevention and control management system; implementing environmental regulation before returning to work; setting up temperature detection points in construction work and living areas, and equipped with temperature detection equipment in line with the regulations; doing a good job in the registration of employee information, strengthening the management of returnees in epidemic areas, carrying out health surveillance, and reducing collective gathering activities, especially in confined spaces, and other measures. To carry out epidemic prevention and control work in accordance with the requirements, in order to effectively protect the life and health of employees and the normal operation of enterprises, is also a prerequisite for resumption of work.

According to the above statement, the supply of spare parts at the Beijing Mercedes-Benz factory is still very tight. According to official sources, Beijing Mercedes-Benz Automobile Co., Ltd. was established on August 8, 2005. Beijing Automobile Co., Ltd. is a joint venture with Daimler AG and Daimler Greater China Investment Co., Ltd. a Sino-German joint venture integrating research and development, engine and vehicle production, sales and after-sales service. Beijing Mercedes-Benz factory is located in Beijing Economic and technological Development Zone, putting into production of E-class, C-class, SUV products, etc., while Beijing has two engine factories.

In 2019, Mercedes-Benz sold 693400 new cars in China, an increase of 6.2% over the same period last year, of which the joint venture Beijing Mercedes-Benz sold more than 550000 vehicles, up 13% from the same period last year. For Beijing Mercedes-Benz, which is in a stage of sustained growth, the inability to produce normally means that terminal delivery is seriously affected, and a blow to sales and full-year results is inevitable.

According to BAIC's performance report, Beijing Automobile Group's operating income in the first half of 2019 was 87.764 billion yuan, with Beijing Mercedes-Benz accounting for 77.807 billion yuan, accounting for 88.7 percent. Therefore, Beijing Mercedes-Benz is BAIC's main source of profit.

In fact, the automobile manufacturing industry is greatly affected by the epidemic and parts interruptions. So far, many enterprises are in a state of suspending production and can not produce normally for the time being.

According to information released by various car companies, Guangzhou Auto Toyota and FAW Toyota, which Toyota operates with local partners, as well as some factories in Dongfeng Honda, Dongfeng Nissan, brilliance BMW, and Hyundai Kia in China, have all postponed the resumption of work due to the epidemic or parts interruptions, and plan to resume production after February 17.

Volkswagen Group, the largest auto group in China, said on February 11 that six of the 14 assembly plants operated with local partners in China had resumed production. Five of the six FAW-Volkswagen plants have started operation, only one of SAIC-Volkswagen eight plants has been put into production, and the remaining plants will resume production on February 17. "We are trying to restore normal production processes and face the challenge of restarting the supply chain nationwide," Volkswagen said.

Some auto industry analysts said that the 2019 Spring Festival holiday was in February, with a low base, and the industry had originally estimated that China's car sales in February 2020 could put an end to more than a dozen consecutive months of negative growth, but the pneumonia epidemic broke this expectation. as a result, sales are expected to fall by more than half in February.

A number of car companies are waiting for a stable supply of spare parts before resuming production, and Beijing Mercedes-Benz is eager to resume production and sent a letter to the government, causing some controversy online. It is reported that the Beijing Mercedes-Benz factory is collating information and will issue a statement soon.

Welcome to subscribe to the WeChat public account "Automotive Industry Focus" to get the first-hand insider information on the automotive industry and talk about things in the automotive circle. Welcome to break the news! WeChat ID autoWechat