And, a recent tour of one of the Asian powerhouse’s vehicle plants has proved this beyond a shadow of a doubt, at least to Honda President and CEO Toshihiro Mibe.
“We have no chance against this,” Mibe said upon a visit to a Shanghai parts factory, commenting on its seamless automation across all levels of production. Logistics, procurement and all aspects of the process were so automated, in fact, that he did not spot a single human worker on the supplier’s floor.
Ford executives saying even three years ago that China was way ahead of the game
Toyota’s CEO has likewise said regarding not just his company, but the industry in general, “unless things change, we will not survive”
Okay, so you’re getting out-competed in the market. Pay proper wages, invest in innovation instead of executive salaries, and take a slimmer profit margin to help your customers.
The trouble is the opposition is subsidised so they can pretty much run negative margins and still turn a profit.
Paying proper wages is the opposite of what would help here.
It is way bigger than that.
The traditional model of manufacturing has been multiplied by 10, “traditional” auto makers will not be able to afford retooling to even produce anything close to the volume of byd and their ilk.