After a month, JLR to resume manufacturing cars from tomorrow
What's the story
Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has announced a phased resumption of production at its manufacturing facilities in the UK, starting tomorrow. The decision comes over a month after the company's factories were disrupted by a cyberattack in late August. The attack forced JLR to halt its global manufacturing as well as retail operations.
Recovery plan
'Important moment' in recovery process, says JLR CEO
JLR's outgoing CEO Adrian Mardell called the restart an "important moment" in their recovery process. He acknowledged that while there is still a lot to do, they are now firmly on the path to recovery. To support this process, JLR has also introduced a new financing scheme aimed at providing cash upfront to its struggling suppliers during production restart.
Production resumption
Phased restart to begin at West Midlands sites
The phased restart will begin at JLR's West Midlands sites, including its engine plant in Wolverhampton and battery assembly facility in Hams Hall near Birmingham. Other key areas such as stamping plants in Castle Bromwich and Solihull will also resume work, while the restart at Halewood is pending further updates. The body shop, paint shop and logistics center of the Solihull vehicle manufacturing plant will also restart operations.
Global impact
Updates on Slovakia and Solihull production lines
JLR's vehicle production in Nitra, Slovakia will also restart soon. The Range Rover and Range Rover Sport production lines at Solihull are expected to resume later this week. However, an update on the Halewood plant on Merseyside is still awaited. Some employees had already returned to work at the Wolverhampton site on Monday.
Supplier support
JLR introduces new short-term financing scheme for suppliers
The new short-term financing scheme by JLR will allow suppliers to get most of their payment upfront after placing an order, with a final payment on invoice receipt. This is expected to speed up payments by as much as 120 days. Mardell stressed the importance of this move in supporting their suppliers' cashflows during this challenging time.