Japanese automaker Honda on Thursday announced plans for the accelerated recovery of its auto production in North America, after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami in Japan seriously disrupted auto parts supply.
Honda will increase production volume at its North American automobile plants to a rate of 100 percent of its original production plan in August, for all models except the 2012 Civic, said the company.
As the supply of parts from Japan improves, production will ramp up in August on a step-by-step, plant-by-plant and model-by-model basis, with production returning to 100 percent of the original plan.
Production of the all-new 2012 Civic lineup will continue at a reduced rate of approximately 50 percent due to the limited supply of key components. However, this situation continues to be evaluated and full production is expected to resume sometime in the fall, with plans to meet anticipated strong demand for the fuel-efficient Civic lineup.
"We are pleased to see a positive turnaround represented by this significant improvement in our production situation," said Jerry Chenkin, executive vice president of Honda Canada Inc.
Honda has managed the unprecedented parts supply issues that resulted from the devastating impact of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami in Japan, with no layoffs at any of its 14 production plants in North America.
Honda Canada Inc. was founded in 1969. It has produced more than 5 million cars and trucks since 1986 at its two vehicle assembly facilities in Alliston, Ontario, including the popular Civic Coupe, Sedan and Si models.