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NA Carmakers Hit 97% of Capacity
Light-vehicle assembly plants in North America operated at 97% of two-shift rated capacity last year compared with 83% in 2011, according to WardsAuto.com.
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Light-vehicle assembly plants in North America operated at 97% of two-shift rated capacity last year compared with 83% in 2011, according to WardsAuto.com.
The online publication says factories last year ran at an average utilization rate of 124% in Mexico, 100% in Canada and 91% in the U.S. WardsAuto says many plants exceeded 100% utilization in the fourth quarter by operating around the clock.
North American auto plants functioned at only 52% of capacity in 2009 at the bottom of the region's slump.
The additional shifts, plus increases in two-shift output at some plants, boosted available production capacity by 842,000 units to 15.6 million units, according to WardsAuto. That total was the highest since 2007, when capacity reached 16.4 million units.
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